/^ 


TUFTS   UNIVERSITY   LIBRARIES 


3   9090  013  418  070 


Webst^^f  p?^m!!v  UhrpTv  fff  >/r-?f>rinnr\'  Medicine 


Kf." 


1  (I 


v„!eal 


W7    ^»']  •■''■ 


Tips  and  Toe- Weights 


A  Natural  and  Plain  Method  of 
Horsjs-Shoeing  ; 


WITH 


AN  APPENDIX 

Tf.eATiNO  ot   TKp  Action  of  the  Race-Horse  and  Trotter  as 

SHOWN  BY  Instantaneous  Photography. 

toe  and  SIDE-WEIGHTS. 


BY 

JOSEPH  CAIRN  SIMPSON, 
(author  of  horse  portraiture. 


\ 


'Rounihoo/d,  short-jointed,  fetlocks  shag  and  Ion j." Shakespeare. 


\ 


■^■'^^'  SAN  FRANCISCO: 

1883. 


iv    . 


■'^^I* 


TO  LELAND  STANFORD, 


v«    A    TOKEX    OF   APPaECIATIOiJ   ,Qp  WHAT    HE    HAS    ACCOMPLISHED    IX 

■    >  > 

MAKIN-Qr  JCNOWN  THE  TRUE  ACTION  OF  HORSES,  AND  THE  INTEREST 


U. 


HE  HAS  TAKEN    IN   IMPROVING   THE   STOC«  OF  THE  PACIFIC 
COAST,  THIS  WORK  IS  RESPECTFULLY  DEDICATED. 


■^%, 


I 


INTRODUCTORY. 


I  present  this  little  volume  with  apologies,  requesting  the  forbear- 
ance of  my  readers  for  the  want  of  connection,  and  in  many  cases 
repetitions,  which  are  due  to  the  desultory  manner  the  work  has  been 
done.  This  is  in  a  great  measure  owing  to  awaiting  the  results  of 
expei'iments  and  taking  up  the  subject  after  the  lapse  of  long  inter- 
vals. As  the  expei'iments  progi'essed  parts  were  written  and  pub- 
lished, and  then  there  would  arise  questions  which  necessitated  fur- 
ther delays.  At  one  time  I  thought  of  rewriting  the  whole  work, 
It  which  would  have  afforded  the  opportunity  to  correct  the  lack  of  con- 
tinuity, and  then  I  thought  it  better  to  present  it  as  it  was,  thus 
giving  the  stages  as  they  occurred.  The  first  chapter  was  published 
in  April,  1876,  and  nearly  eight  years  have  been  occupied  in  experi- 
menting, and  though  confined  to  a  small  number  of  horses,  the  ex- 
tension over  so  long  a  period  has  made  the  trials  equivalent  to  a 
larger  number  of  cases  for  a  shorter  time.  In  fact,  the  experiments 
could  not  have  been  can-ied  out  in  a  less  space  than  three  years,  as 
in  tlie  case  of  Anteeo,  a  colt  was  taken  as  a  subject  from  the  first 
time  of  shoeing,  when  fifteen  and  a  half  months  old  until  nearly  four 
years  of  age.  By  taking  an  animal  as  young  as  Anteeo,  and  contin- 
ing  the  use  of  tips  until  so  neai"ly  matured,  the  test  was  thorough  as 
to  the  effect  on  the  feet  and  legs.  Previous  to  that  the  diftex-ences  be- 
tween full. shoes  and  tips  were  tried,  the  beai'ing  on  the  i-elative  trot- 
ting speed  being  the  object,  and  the  results  in  every  case  were  in 
favor  of  tips,  so  that  if  it  was  further  proven  that  the  theory  of  following 
nature  as  closely  as  possible  was  the  pi'oper  procedure  to  keep  the  feet 


11 


and  legs  in  the  best  shape,  the  advantages  of  the  system  could  not  be 
overrated.  While  offering  excuses  for  the  faults  alluded  to,  I  present 
with  the  utmost  confidence  my  views,  with  confirmed  belief  that  the 
system  recommended  is  altogether  the  most  rational  method  of  hoi'se- 
shoeing,  and  when  the  advantages  are  realized  it  will  supercede  that 
which  for  centuries  has  been  known  to  be  faulty. 

I  do  not  claim  novelty  in  the  use  of  tips  or  "  lunette  "  shoes.  They 
are  of  comparatively  ancient  origin.     But  I  do  claim  that  the  man- 
ner of  placing  them   on  the  feet  in  a  great  measure  nullified   the 
benefits.     The  plan  of  cutting  a  shoulder  for  the  posterior  portion  of 
the  tip  to  rest  against,  and  thus  giving  the  bottom  of  the  foot  a  level 
and  natural  bearing,  was  unknown  to  me  until  I  discovered  it  in  the 
way  whicli  is  told ;  and  I  have  yet  to  meet  a  blacksmith  who  was 
acquainted  with  the  plan  until  I  made  it  public.     The  letters  which 
are  copied  from  the  London  Field  were  published  five  years  after  it 
was  put  in  type  here ;  and  therefore  I  can  claim  priority  of  them. 
Simple  as  it  is,  I  believe  it  to  be  the  corner-stone  of  the  system. 
When  the  tip  is  "feathered"  it  either  has  to  be  set  with  so  much  in- 
cline on  the  foot  surface  as  to  make  a  strain  on  the  wall,  or  the  toe 
is  raised  so  much  higher  than  it  should  be  that  the  proper  bearing  is 
destroyed.     The  square  shoulder  is  also  an  advantage  in  keeping  the 
tip  in  the  proper  place  when  the  nails  are  driven  ;  but  it  makes  the 
work  of  fitting  much  more  troublesome.     This  is  one  of  the  reasons 
why  blacksmiths  are  so  averse  to  the  setting  of  tips,  though  their 
greatest  antipathy  arises  from  the  nearly  universal  determination  to 
stick  to  the  old  ruts.     Until  this  is  overcome  it  will  be  difiicult  for 
owners  to  get  their  horses  shod  satisfactorily  unless  under  their  per- 
sonal supervision,  though  eventually  there  will  be  some  of  the  most 
enterprising  smiths  to  lead  the  way,    and  others  will  be  compelled  to 
follow.     That  this  difficulty  will  be  obviated  I  feel  confident,  and  in 
every  town  of  any  size  there  will  be  one  smith  who  has  sense  enough 
to  discover  that  his  interests  will  be  promoted  by  laboring  on  the 
side  of  reform.      Until  lately  I  was  under  the  impression  that  shoe- 
ing-smiths  would  have  to  be  educated  to  a  higher  degree,  and  another 
generation  at  the  forge  and  on  the  floor  before  the  work  would  be 
properly  done. 


lU 


I  was  led  to  this  belief  from  the  trouble  there  was  in  getting  the 
tips  made  properly,  and  then  a  ten  times  more  arduous  task  was  to 
get  them  correctly  put  on.  In  my  first  experiments  I  made  patt-erns 
of  wood,  and  had  them  cast  by  a  brass-founder ;  and  had  there  been 
an  opportunity  of  getting  some  better  metal  cast  in  the  moulds,  such 
as  steel  or  even  malleable  iron,  I  should  have  adhered  to  the  plan, 
but  the  brass  wore  away  so  rapidly  that  I  had  to  change,  and  I  was 
fortunate  in  finding  a  blacksmith  who  would  forge  them  vezy  nearly 
in  accordance  with  the  patterns  furnished.  Latterly  I  have  met  a 
blacksmith  who  is  as  enthusiastic  in  his  advocacy  of  the  use  of  tips 
as  I  am,  who  has  put  them  on  all  kinds  of  horses,  including  those 
used  for  heavy  di-aft,  and  with  satisfactory  results  in  all  cases. 
This  is  Paul  Friedhoffer,  but  as  his  shops  are  in  San  Francisco,  the 
only  relief  to  me  was  in  being  enabled  to  get  the  tips  made  as  I 
wanted  them,  the  setting  having  to  be  done  by  myself,  as  the  trouble 
of  sending  horses  from  Oakland  offset  the  labor.  And  by  the  way, 
it  is  doubtful  if  I  could  have  continued  the  seven  yeai's'  war,  if  un- 
able to  prepare  the  foot  and  nail  the  tips  on  myself.  In  that  case  I 
would  have  been  compelled  to  superintend  the  job  from  the  start  to 
the  finish,  and  this  would  have  entailed  the  loss  of  more  time.  By 
doing  it  myself  I  was  also  enabled  to  see  the  exact  state  of  the  foot, 
and  make  changes  that  were  found  beneficial.  Though  the  pi-actice 
has  made  me  more  expert  in  the  use  of  knife,  rasp  and  file,  and  given 
me  an  aptitude  to  drive  a  nail  where  I  want  it  to  go,  it  is  a  hot  job, 
and  one  that  leaves  a  soreness  of  muscle  which  is  not  pleasant.  Sus- 
tained, however,  by  the  implicit  faith  that  I  was  working  in  a  good 
cause,  that  the  ultimate  result  would  bring  amelioi^ation  to  the  ani- 
mals I  have  been  so  intimately  connected  with  for  more  than  a  quarter 
of  a  century,  I  have  never  flinched  from  the  self-imposed  task,  and  for 
the  last  three  or  four  years  have  never  lost  confidence.  I  have 
listened  patiently  to  the  arguments  offered  by  the  opponents  of  tips, 
watched  closely  for  defects  in  the  system  which  the  reasoning  on  the 
other  side  was  to  disclose,  and  which  at  first  I  thought  might  over- 
turn my  previous  conclusions  ;  but  every  succeeding  year  has  added 
strength  to  my  convictions,  and  given  me  renewed  courage  to  adhere. 
Many  years  ago  I  had  to  select  a  motto  to  go  on  the  recoi'ds  of  a 


IV 

society,  and  tlie  one  cliosen  was  "  Hand  fast."  I  have  held  tena- 
ciously to  the  belief  in  the  efficacy  of  thoroughbred  blood  in  the  trot- 
ter for  fully  twenty-five  years,  and  now  the  grandaughter  of  a 
thoroughbred  mare  occupies  the  highest  place  in  the  record  with 
others  of  the  same  degree  of  consanguinity  to  tlie  royal  blood  close 
up  in  the  calendar. 

After  these  seven  years'  experience  with  tips,  the  grip  has  grown 
firmer,  tightening  with  every  successive  trial,  practice  so  fully  demon- 
strating the  correctness  of  the  theory  that  nature  is  a  correct  tutor, 
that  I  hold  fast  as  confidently  as  in  the  other  illustration.  In  order 
to  do  so  it  was  fortunate  that  I  had  a  few  horses  of  my  own  to  ex- 
periment with  ;  and  though  forced  to  offer  apologies  for  making  them 
so  conspicuous,  it  was  compulsory  that  the  prominence  should  be 
given.  Had  there  been  others  interested  it  is  not  likely  that  the 
tests  would  have  been  made  so  thorough.  It  is  probable  that  a  want  of 
harmony  would  have  prevailed,  and  a  difference  of  opinion  interfered. 

That  thei'e  has  been  fair  success  in  the  way  of  trotting  speed  I 
think  is  evident.  The  only  colts  I  have  trained  in  California  to  ti'ot 
have  been  five  of  my  own  breeding.  Three  of  these  were  foaled 
East,  two  hei-e.  Four  of  them  have  shown  trials  better  than  2:40 
when  three  and  four  years  old,  the  other  trotted  in  3:02  when  a  year- 
ling. With  the  exception  of  the  yearling,  the  fastest  work  was  done 
in  tips,  the  excejjtion  being  barefooted.  This  training  has  been  inci- 
dental to  my  other  avocations,  and  hence  not  as  thorough  as  I  could 
have  wished.  ' 

The  point  has  been  raised  that  trotting  the  yearling  barefooted  was 
an  admission  on  my  part  of  a  want  of  confidence  in  the  system  ad- 
vocated. The  reasons  for  trotting  him  barefooted  are  given  in  his 
history,  though  this  is  unnecessaiy  to  show  the  absurdity  of  the 
charge. 

As  light  tips  set  in  the  manner  described  is  the  nearest  approach 
to  leaving  the  foot  bare,  it  is  manifest  to  the  simplest  understanding 
that  the  benefits  of  one  will  be  shared  by  the  other.  There  is  so 
nearly  the  same  "  spring  "  in  the  foot,  when  the  tip  does  not  extend 
farther  back  than  the  point  of  the  frog,  that  this  valuable  pro[ierty 
is  retained,  and  the  frog-pressure  is  identical  in  both. 


The  appendix,  I  am  sorry  to  state,  is  not   what  I  anticipated  to 
make  it.     Toe-weights  are  certainly  an  intricate  study,  or  it  may  be 
better  to  write  that  the  effects  of  weight  on   tlie   foot,  especially  on 
the   outer  part  of  it,  though  known  to  be  potent,  the  causes  as  yet 
are  unexplained.     At  least  such  is  my  case,  and  I  must  acknowledge 
an  ignorance  which  is  an  estoppel  against  any  attempt  to  elucidate. 
Through  the    kindness   of    ex-Governor  Stanford,   however,   I    am 
enabled  to  give   some  valuable   information  regarding  the  action  of 
the  race-horse  and  trotter,  and,  with  his  consent,  present  representa- 
tions  of  the    most  pi'ominent   features  of   the  "  horse  in  motion." 
Very  unfortunately  the  copy  of  the  work  edited  by  Dr.  Stillman, 
which  was   sent  me  by  (lovernor  Stanford,  miscarried,  and  never 
having  seen  a  copy  I  have  been  without  the  information  I  hoped  to 
make  use  of.     The  first  cards  that  were  published,  and  a  series  of 
views  arranged  for  the  zoetrope,  which  were  sent  me  by  Mr.  Muybridge, 
have  given  an  insight  of  the  greatest  value,  and,  in  fact,  have  taught 
.ne  the  only  true  knowledge  I  possess  on  the  action  of  the  race-horse, 
iefore  these  instantaneous  photographs  were  taken,  the  manner  in 
which  a  race-horse  progressed  was  as  completely  hidden  as  though 
thi(  gallop  had  never  been  seen,  and  even  the  short  explanation  ^^'ill 
be  ''ound  of  the  greatest  service,  if  attention  is  paid  to  the  subject. 
Stil,  though  it  is  as  plain  as  the  "  writing  on   the  wall,"  that  a 
charge  in   part  of  the  present  system  of  tx-aining  is  imperative,  the 
pionter   who  realizes   the  importance  of  benefiting  from  the  lessons 
that  the  camera  places  before   him  has  an  arduous  task,  and  the 
methols  he  employs  to  turn  to  a  practical  use  the  teachings  of  the 
Palo  iJto  school  will  excite  no  end  of  ridicule  and  badinage. 

The  '"ime  will  surely  come,  notwithstanding  the  jokes  and  jeers, 
and  tliQ-e  Avill  be  progress  in  this  as  well  as  other  things.  When 
that  tine  comes,  Gov^ernor  Stanford  will  receive  the  thanks  he  has  so 
richly  eirned,  and  the  immense  expenditure  that  was  necessary  to 
make  th?  work  complete  will  bring  a  return  commensui-ate  with  the 
outlay.  Not  to  the  donor,  as  his  reward  will  be  restricted  to  the 
satisfactbn  of  having  made  men  wiser,  and  the  still  more  satisfactory 
knowledge  that  the  wisdom  gained  has  ameliorated  the  condition  of 
the  horsi. 


VI 

It   may   be   considered*  out  of  place,  in  these  brief  introductory- 
remarks,  to  allude  to  a  work  of  such  magnitude  as  the  photogi*aph- 
ing  of  animals  in  motion,  the  importance  of  the  subject  demand- 
ing a  far  more  extended   elucidation.     Still,  I  cannot  let  the  oppor- 
tunity escape  of  reference,  however  brief,  or  pass  by  without  proj^er 
acknowledgment   of   the  assistance   obtained  from  a  study    of   the 
photographs.     Although  I  had  a  fair  knowledge  of  the  action  of  the 
fast  trotter,  I  was  as  totally  ignorant  of  that  of  the  race-horse  as  if 
I  had  never  seen  one  gallop.     Even  the  three  cuts  which  are  given 
in  the  first  chapter  of  the  appendix  pi'ove  that  former  ideas  of  the 
manner  in  which  a  horse  ran  were  as  erroneous  as  could  be,  and  por- 
tions of  the  stride  are  fully  as  grotesque  as  the  representations  given. 
A  comparison  of  the  cuts  of  parts  of  the  racing  and  trotting  stride 
will  show  the  great  difference  there  is  in  the  two  gaits,  and  even  the  i 
short  essay  accompanying  them  will  be  found  of  some  service.     At] 
all  events,  they   show  how  much  greater  the  strain  is  on  the  fore  le^ 
of  the  race-horse,  irrespective  of  the  weight  on  his  back,   and  th/ 
contrast  between  "the  last  effort"  and   "the  initial"  sufficient 
account  for  an  ailing  fore  leg  being  so  much  worse  for  the  race-hoi^e 
than  the  trotter.  / 

The  appendix  is  not  as  full  as  I  thought  it  would  be  whenj-the 
opening  chapters  were  written,  nearly  two  years  ago.  Then  I/fan- 
cied that  I  had  obtained  a  clew  which  would  lead  to  satisfactory 
explanations  of  the  cause  for  weight  applied  on  the  outside  ^f  the 
foot  exerting  such  a  potent  influence  on  the  fast-trotting  action.  The 
more  study  I  gave  it  the  more  puzzling  it  became,  and  at  Tresent 
can  only  state  that  I  am  not  capable  of  giving  reasons  whicj  are  at 
all  satisfactory  to  myself,  and  conjectures  would  not  be  wfrth  the 
space  given  or  the  time  of  the  reader.  It  may  be  that  futuiB  exper- 
iments and  closer  observation  _  will  lead  to  the  discovery  cf  a  key, 
or  it  is  quite  as  likely  that  some  trivial  circumstance  will  jtove  the 
guide  to  escape  from  the  labyrinth,  and  chance,  as  it  has  doiie  hereto- 
fore, lead  to  the  correct  solution  of  the  problem.  Awaiting  develop- 
ments, I  can  only  offer  the  excuses  given,  and  trust  that  the  apology 
will  be  accepted. 

Before  concluding,  I  miist  again  refer  to  the  want  of  cmnection 


vu 


and  repetitions,  and  the  necessity  for  bearing  in  mind  that  the  i)uljli- 
cation  of  the  various  chapters  was  broken  by  long  delays.  The  chap- 
tei'S  were  written  in  the  following  order:  From  Chapter  1st  to  7th, 
inclusive,  April,  1876,  to  1878,  then  from  that  time  until  1881, 
there  were  occasional  publications,  and  the  remainder  within  the 
last  few  months. 

I  cannot  say  good-by,  however,  without  reitei^ating  my  implicit 
belief  in  the  efficacy  of  tips,  and  in  contradistinction  from  the  toe- 
weight  puzzle,  there  are  reasons,  plain  and  palpable,  why  the  result 
of  practice  should  be  as  I  have  found  it. 

Jos.  Cairn  Simpson. 
San  Francisco,  February,  1883. 


EXPLANATORY. 


A  query  published  in  the  Breeder's  Gazette  a  short  time  ago,  has 
led  me  to  think  that  it  will  be  well  to  add  other  cuts,  with  an  expla- 
nation, to  give  a  perfect  understanding  of  the  system.  It  appears 
simple  enough  to  state  that  the  tip  should  be  made  of  nearly  uniform 
thickness,  square  at  the  ends,  and  the  horn  cut  away  so  that  the  foot 
will  have  the  proper  bearing  when  the  tip  is  set.  A  more  perfect 
elucidation,  however,  is  afforded  by  the  cuts,  and  in  order  to  show 
exactly  the  state  of  the  foot  of  a  four-year-old  that  has  never  worn  a 
shoe,  a  few  days  ago  Mr.  Wyttenbach  made  the  drawing  from  nature. 
The  outline  was  obtained  from  placing  the  foot  on  a  piece  of  card- 
board, and  carefully  tracing  around  it.  The  other  parts  of  the  sketch 
were  filled  in  while  the  colt's  foot  was  held  up,  so  that  the  artist 
could  see  as  he  went  on  with  the  work. 

There  ai-e  many  points  of  interest  to  examine.  In  the  first  place 
it  is  widely  different  from  a  foot  that  has  worn  a  shoe,  and  it  also 
varies  from  one  that  has  never  been  shod,  if  the  foot  has  not  been 
cared  for  in  the  same  manner.  The  first  position  will  be  readily 
granted,  as  any  one  can  verify  it  by  making  a  comparison  ;  the 
second  is  not  so  well  understood,  and  the  causes  for  the  difference 
overlooked.  The  natui-al  supposition  v/ould  be  that  if  a  colt  had  run 
without  shoes  until  four  years  old  the  foot  would  be  in  the  proper 
shape  ;  and  if  the  animal  was  in  an  entirely  natural  state,  roaming 
over  the  country  wherever  it  desired,  it  might  be  so.  Domestica- 
tion, however,  changes  the   coui-se,  and  small   fields,  paddocks  and 


IX 

stables  entail  a  different  life.  In  the  case  of  Anteeo,  the  field  was 
circunisci'ibed  to  200  feet  by  133,  with  a  jog  that  doubled  the  latter 
distance,  so  that  266  feq|  was  the  longest  run  he  could  take.  The 
yard  he  sometimes  ran  in  vvas  50x133  feet,  and  when  not  in  these  a 
medium-sized  box-stall  was  his  domicile.  With  no  better  chance  to 
wear  the  horn  away,  the  feet  would  have  gi-own  long  at  the  toe,  sjjlit 
and  broken  off.  The  heels  would  have  got  out  of  all  proportion,  and 
undoubtedly  more  or  less  contracted.  The  frog  would  have  shrunk 
from  lack  of  use,  and  even  the  inner  portion  of  the  foot  between  the 
walls  been  in  an  abnormal  condition.  From  the  time  he  was  a  few 
months  old,  his  feet  have  been  trimmed  to  get  rid  of  the  excess  of 
growth,  and  since  he  was  fifteen  months  old  the  front  pai't  has  been 
protected  with  a  tip  the  greater  part  of  the  time.  The  wall  fi-om  the 
tip  has-been  cut  down  so  that  it  was  only  a  ti-ifle  lower  than  the 
frog,  so  that  the  "  spring  "  of  the  quarters  would  permit  the  frog  to 
bear  its  due  share  of  the  weight,  and  no  matter  how  i-agged  it  be- 
came, the  frog  was  never  cut.  When  the  new  frog  was  ready  to  re- 
place the  old,  there  were  small  hanging  fragments  which  were  pulled 
off,  though  the  knife  was  never  brought  into  requisition  further  than 
to  cut  away  where  the  tip  rested,  and  the  sole  back  of  the  tip  was  left 
i];itact.  This,  too,  would  exfoliate,  and  when  a  flake  was  so  loose  as 
to  be  easily  removed,  that  woxxld  also  be  got  rid  of  by  prying  it  off. 
For  a  time  I  used  an  instrument  which  would  cut  away  the  horn  only 
where  the  metal  replaced  it ;  the  sole  between  the  wings  of  the  tip 
would  also  be  left  to  exfoliate ;  but  in  order  to  get  a  true  bearing, 
with  only  a  knife,  rasp  and  file,  it  was  necessary  to  level  that  portion. 
As  the  cut  shows  exactly  the  outline  of  the  sole  of  the  foot,  it 
will  be  easy  to  determine  the  proportion  between  that  and  the  size  of 
the  colt  when  the  measurements  are  given.  Anteeo  is  a  trifle  over 
fifteen  and  a  half  hands  high,  and  of  more  than  ordinary  substance. 
His  limbs  are  larger  than  usual,  or,  rather,  it  will  be  better  stated  by 
saying  wider.  As  a  general  thing,  the  Electioneers  have  rather 
small  feet,  and  I  firmly  believe  that  if  Anteeo  had  worn  shoes  his 
would  be  at  least  half  an  inch  naiTOwer  than  they  are.  The  width 
and  length  are  nearly  the  same,  and  even  a  diagonal  measurement,  as 
from  one  heel  to  a  point  the  same  distance  on  either  side  of  the  toe,  is 


only  a  trifle  greater.  But  the  most  striking  feature  in  the  cut  is  the 
frog,  and,  doubtless,  those  who  have  obtained  their  knowledge  of 
this  important  part  of  the  foot  of  the  holjge  from  seeing  those  of 
horses  which  have  worn  shoes,  or  from  illustrations  in  the  books,  will 
be  surprised,  and  think  that  thei-e  is  something  wrong  in  the  delinea- 
tion. It  is  not  only  wide  at  the  posterior  portion,  as  it  reaches  far 
nearer  the  toe,  and  in  place  of  the  crevice  in  the  center  there  is  only 
a  slight  depression. 

In  a  previous  illustration,  given  on  page  8,  chapter  1,  the  only  cut 
obtainable  at  the  time,  the  representation  is  very  faulty.  In  fact, 
this  is  the  first  instance  of  correct  drawing  of  a  frog  that  may  be 
termed  perfect,  all  others  which  I  have  seen  being  studies  from  feet 
which  have  become  malformed. 

Although  the  frog  changes  in  appearance,  and  there  is  quite  a  dif- 
fei'ence  between  the  old,  ragged  surface  and  the  new  which  is  ready 
to  take  its  place,  still  the  similarity  of  broad  surfaces  and  elasticity 
is  apparent.  The  old  has  served  the  intended  piai-pose,  doing  its 
work  until  the  other  is  ready. 

When  mutilated  with  the  knife,  and  that  mutilation  accompanied 
by  non-use,  in  place  of  this  healthy  growth  it  shrivels  and  becomes 
nearly  as  hard  as  the  horn ;  there  is  a  deep  fissure  in  place  of  the 
^sligllt  depression  in  the  middle,  the  longitudinal  axis  is  shortened, 
and  the  whole  is  as  different  from  the  engraving  as  can  be  well 
imagined. 

The  illustrations  leave  little  to  add  regarding  the  manner  of  setting 
the  tip  or  applying  the  toe-weight  which  I  am  partial  to,  but  inas- 
much as  the  questions  asked  indicate  that  the  proper  method  is  not 
fully  understood,  it  may  be  as  well  to  be  more  minute  in  the  instruc- 
.tions. 

As  has  been  stated,  the  tip  is  only  a  trifle  thicker  at  the  toe  than 
the  posterior  portion,  the  object  being  to  give  as  nearly  a  level  bear- 
ing as  possible.  If  there  was  much  taper,  the  slope  from  the  toe 
would  bring  a  greater  strain  on  the  nails,  and,  consequently,  a  greater 
.danger  of  displacement.  It  is  also  evident  that  the  square  shoulder 
is  of  material  assistance  in  keeping  the  tip  in  place  while  the  nails 
iare  driven,  and  does  away  with  any  necessity  for  a  clip  at  the  toe. 


XI 


Many  years  ago  I  advocated  driving  the  nails  from  the  inner  side 
of  the  wall,  and  the  benefit  of  this  practice  has  been  sustained  by  the 
score  of  yeai's  in  which  I  have  followed  it.  There  is  not  so  much 
danger  of  "pricking"  in  setting  the  tip  as  the  full  shoe,  owing  to  a 
greater  thickness  of  the  wall  in  the  anterior  portion  of  the  foot ;  it 
also  gives  a  more  secui'e  fastening,  as  the  horn  is  perforated  in  place 
of  the  layers  being  divided,  and  a  much  lower  hold  can  be  taken.  A 
horse-nail  is  Avedge-sliaped,  and  when  driven  parallel  with  the  fibers 
thei'e  mus^  be  a  tendency  to  split  the  layers  apart,  but  if  they  are 
perfoi-ated  there  is  no  such  risk.  When  the  nail-holes  are  punched 
close  to  the  edge,  the  nail  has  to  be  driven  on  a  curve.  At  first  the 
direction  is  toward  the  sensitive  portion  of  the  foot,  and  then  the 
bevel  at  the  point  throws  it  outwards.  Now  it  is  evident  that  if  the 
course  of  the  nail  approaches  the  sensitive  part  of  the  foot,  there  is 
danger,  if  even  it  is  not  wounded  at  the  time  of  driving.  Clinching 
the  nail  when  it  is  curved  throws  a  gi-eater  strain  on  the  central 
part,  forcing  that  part  to  press  against  the  inner  horn,  and  the 
concussion  aggravates  the  tendency. 

If  in  place  of  being  driven  on  a  cui've  the  nail  goes  straight,  the 
strain  caused  by  clinching  and  concussion  is  uniform,  and  the  straight 
line,  at  whatever  angle,  obviates  this  difiiculty. 

Then  it  is  manifest  that  if  the  nail  is  started  from  the  inside  of 
the  wall,  and  driven  at  any  angle  which  will  bring  the  point  through, 
it  never  can  get  near  the  sensitive  tissues.  The  nearest  point  is 
where  it  is  first  started,  and  this  is  so  far  below  the  quick  that  there 
cannot  be  any  danger  of  wounding.  In  driving  the  nails  from  the 
inside,  it  is  necessary  to  give  the  nail-hole  the  same  slope  outwardly, 
or  make  the  hole  large  enough  to  give  room  for  directing  the  point. 

I  prefer  the  latter  plan,  and  then  sink  the  head  of  the  nail  below 
the  surface,  which  completely  fills  the  opening.  A  punch  is  used 
when  the  nail-head  is  level  with  the  shoe  to  di'ive  it  home,  and  a 
clinching-iron  that  has  a  projection  which  keeps  the  nail  in  place 
when  it  is  riveted.  This  is  when  tolerably  heavy  tips  are  used  ;  with 
lighter  and  thinner  ones  the  head  of  a  No.  3  nail  will  fill  the  counter- 
sunk hole.  Countersinking  is  preferable  to  creasing — fullering  as 
some  smiths  tei-m  it — and  when  the  tip  is  so  thin  as  to  let  the  heads 
of  the  nails  project  they  ai-e  filed  to  a  level  of  the  tip. 


The  countersinking  cannot  be  done  as  close  to  the  edge  as  a  crease 
without  giving  an  inward  direction,  and  the  tool  with  which  the 
crease  is  cut  is  held  on  a  bevel  inclining  to  the  inside.  This,  as  has 
been  shown,  compels  the  nail  being  driven  on  a  curve,  first,  to  get 
sufficient  "  hold,"  and  when  that  is  done  to  bring  it  to  the  outside,  in 
order  to  clinch  it  and  fasten  the  shoe. 

Anyone  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  drive  a  horse-nail  into  a  piece 
of  wood,  giving  it  the  same  curve  that  the  smith  does,  twist  ofi"  the 
point  and  clinch  it  in  the  same  way,  by  splitting  the  A^ood  apai-t 
after  this  is  done,  he  will  see  how  much  greater  the  inward  pres- 
sure is,  and  that  if  there  is  only  a  thin  stratum  between  the  nail  and 
the  sensitive  part  of  the  foot,  there  must  be  a  pressure  that  will 
result  in  lameness. 

When  the  nails  are  driven,  in  lieu  of  filing  a  notch  to  receive  the 
clinch,  I  use  a  small  gouge,  only  cutting  away  so  miich  of  the  horn 
as  will  hold  it.  By  following  this  plan,  the  clinch  is  depressed  where 
it  cannot  do  injury,  and  this  without  weakening  the  foot.  As  is  well 
known,  the  enamel  is  much  the  strongest  part,  and  when  the  edge  of 
the  rasp  is  used  to  cut  a  i-eceptacle  for  the  clinch,  the  groove  extends 
from  the  front  to  the  rear  nail.  I  have  known  many  instances  where 
the  whole  side,  ft-om  the  clinches  to  the  nail-holes  at  the  bottom,  was 
torn  off  with  the  shoe,  and  this  could  not  occur  when  the  plan  rec- 
ommended is  followed.  The  toe  and  sides  of  the  tip  should  be  flush 
with  the  edge  of  the  horn,  or  so  near  that  there  is  only  a  trifle  of 
projection  to  be  filed  away.  It  is  better  to  have  it  exactly  even,  and 
if  the  gouge-cutting  is  pi-opeily  done  the  clinch  will  be  hammered 
uniform  with  the  horn,  so  that  there  is  no  necessity  for  tiling ;  and 
should  there  be  a  roughness,  care  must  be  taken  that  in  removing  it 
the  horn  is  not  marked.  Every  mark  of  the  file  on  the  enamel  is  an 
injury.  It  not  only  weakens,  as  it  also  gives  a  chance  for  moisture  to 
penetrate,  and  I  am  thoroughly  convinced  that  moisture  is  injurious 
and  that  one  purpose  of  the  enamel  is  to  render  the  foot  impervious 
to  the  entrance  of  fluids.  As  has  been  shown,  the  horn  is  composed 
of  tubes — hairs — fastened  together  with  an  agglutinizing  material, 
and  each  tube  filled  with  a  substance  that  gives  life.  The  application 
of  water  weakens  the  adhering  properties  ;  maceration  destroys ;  that 


XIU 


is,  long-continued  soakings  are  prejudicial,  and  even  washing  the  feet 
had  better  be  dispensed  with,  especially  when  the  enamel  has  been 
wounded  by  the  rasp  or  file.  It  was  also  shown  that  driving  the 
nails  cut  these  tubes  off,  and  that  below  the  severed  portion  the  horn 
is  virtually  dead.  The  low  hold  arising  fi-om  driving  the  nail  from 
the  inner  parts  of  the  wall  does  less  injury  than  when  it  takes  the 
curving  direction  and  a  high  hold,  and  the  larger  the  nail  the  greater 
the  damage.  Four  small  nails  (No.  3)  will  hold  a  tip  of  the  size 
figured  in  l^e  cut  firmly  in  its  place  as  long  as  it  should  be  worn  ; 
and  in  cases  where  I  have  been  negligent  in  resetting,  the  tip  Avas 
not  misplaced  until  that  and  the  nail-heads  were  worn  away,  so  that 
the  tip  could  be  pulled  off  without  cutting  the  clinches,  and  yet  it 
was  retained  by  the  slight  hold  which  the  worn  nails  gave. 

In  the  cut  the  nail-holes  are  shown  in  order  to  show  the  manner 
of  countersinking.  It  is  scarcely  necessary  to  state  that  when  placed 
on  the  foot  the  nail-heads  have  quite  a  difierent  appearance. 

This  description,  I  think,  will  be  quite  sufficient  to  explain  the 
mode  of  setting  and  the  reasons  in  brief  for  following  that  system. 
The  toe-weights  have  been  described  in  the  appendix,  and  the  cuts 
will  complete  the  lesson. 


Note. — As  it  might  be  thought  that  my  partiality  for  tips  and 
favoritism  for  the  colt  warped  my  judgment,  I  requested  O.  A.  Hickok 
to  make  a  careful  and  close  scrutiny  to  see  what  the  effect  had  been 
of  constant  wearing  of  tips  on  Anteeo.  The  appended  certificate 
shows  the  result : 

Oa^and,  March  29,  1883. 
I  have,  to-day,  critically  examined  the  feet  and  legs  of  Jos.  Cairn  Simpson's 
colt,  Anteeo,  and  hereby  certify  that,  in  my  estimation,  they  could  not  be  in 
more  perfect  condition. 

0.  A.  HiCKOK. 


XIV 

A  certificate  from  Mr.  Hickok  will  carry  more  weight  with  East- 
ern readers  than  that  of  a  veterinarian. 

A  trainer  of  his  skill  and  experience  will  detect  anything  wrong 
with  the  legs  and  feet,  and  if  there  is  the  least  variation  from  a 
normal  condition  discover  it.  It  is  almost  unnecessary  to  state  that 
every  individual  who  has  seen  Anteeo  concurs  in  the  views  expressed 
by  the  skillful  trainer  and  driver  of  trotters,  and  very  many  regard 
the  "  perfect  condition "  of  the  feet  and  legs  as  being  wonderful 
under  anv  cii'cumstances. 


■.■'.:■■  y 


TIP 


AND 


Toe -Weights 


JOS.  CAIRN  SIMPSON. 


TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS, 


CHAPTER  I. 

Necessity  for  a  Better  System  of  Shoeing, 


The  domestication  of  the  horse,  and  the  purposes  he  is  used  for, 
have  necessitated  the  protection  of  the  foot.  In  those  nations  the^ 
people  of  wliich  could  forge  iron,  or  some  kindred  metal,  into  the 
proper  shape,  shoes  of  that  material  have  been  used.  Different  peo- 
ple have  had  various  patterns,  from  the  sheet  of  iron,  merely  perfor- 
ated with  a  central  hole,  svich  as  the  Arabs  put  on  their  horses,  to 
the  elaborate  ai-ticles  which  some  smiths  delight  in  fashioning,  I  am 
under  the  fii-m  belief  that  all  the  systems,  all  the  shapes,  are  more  or 
less  pernicious,  and  that  a  shoe  which  will  j>reserve  the  natural  func- 
tions of  the  foot  has  yet  to  be  invented.  Simple  as  the  subject  may 
apj)ear  to  those  who  have  little .  acquaintance  with  the  horse,  it  has 
troubled  the  minds  of  acute  observers  more  than  any  other  portion 
of  stable  management,  and  though  many  have  cried  Eureka,  they 
have  been  pi-emature  in  their  claims. 

It  is  difficult  to  find  two  who  will  agree  in  eveiy  particular  as  to 
the  pro])er  shoeing  of  the  horse,  and  now  that  the  trotting-horse 
represents  such  an  immense  capital,  greater  efforts  are  constantly 
being  miule  to  get  a  pedal  appendage  which  will  meet  the  require- 
ments of'  trainers  and  owners. 


2  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

The  art  of  training  trotters  has  made  rapid   advancement  in  the 
last  decade,  and  the  importance  of   liaving  them  shod  properly,  and 
the  adaptation  of  the  shoe  to  the  animal,  has  been  fully  acknowl- 
edged.    Every  trainer  who  gives  the  subject  much  thought,  is  aware 
of  the  great  change  in  the  action  which  can  be   bi-ought   about  by 
shoeing.     The  stride  of  the   "  long-gaited "   hoi'se  can  be  shortened, 
more   or  less  knee-action  induced,  a  tendency  to   interfere,  or  the 
wounding  of  the  shin   or  knee  done  away  with,  by  a  change    in  the 
shoes.     The   race-horse,  in  training,  wears  a  shoe  which  will  weigh 
about  forty  ounces  to  the  set.     His  plates,  in  which  he  runs  his  races, 
will  weigh   less  than  one-quarter  of  that,  and  the  difference   in   his 
speed  will  be  from  two  to  four  seconds  to  the  mile  in  favor  of  the 
lightest.     In  as  muscular  and   powerful  an  animal  as  the  horse,  it 
cannot  be  the  few  ounces   of  weight  which  effects  so  much,  but  the 
action,  or  method  of  running,  must  be   favorably  influenced  by  the 
weai'ing  of  the  plate.     If  this  result  follows  in  the  fast,  flying  gallop 
or  run,  why  should  not  the  fast  trot — certainly  a  more  artificial  man- 
ner of  progression — be  as  susceptible   of  the  changes    in  shoeing? 
•Before  considering  the  efiect  of  shoeing  on  the  action,  it  may  be  as 
well  to  investigate  the  foot  itself,  and  judging  from  the  conformation 
of  the  parts,  endeavor  to  find  out  if  any  of  the  present  methods  are 
rational.     First,  there  is  the  wall  of  solid  horn,  compact,  tenacious 
and  altogether  admirable  for  the  natural  purpose  of  supporting  the 
animal,  and  withstanding  the  wear  consequent  upon  the  friction  of 
travel.     The  sole,  not  so  hard  as  the  wall,  but  of  different  growth, 
with  a  natural  provision  for  the  surplus  to  drop  out  in  flakes.     The 
frog,  still  softer  than  the  ^ole,  and  highly  elastic.     The  wall  is  sus- 
ceptible of  dilatation  and  contraction,  while  the  form  of  the  sole 
and  wall,  aided  by  the  commissures,  is  such  as  to  permit  it  without 
injur-y.     The  bars  are  a  sort  of  composite  between  these  two,  and  in 
the  sound  foot  there  is  quite  a  space  between  the  frog  and  the  jjos- 
terior  portion  of  the  bars.     The  bars  are  a  partial  continuation  of 
the  wall  to  where  they  connect  at  the  apex,  immediately  in  front  of 
the  point  of  the  frog.     The  commissures,  or  channels,  between  the 
bars  and  frog,  are  deep  and  angular  depressions.     In  the  natural  foot 
there  is  a  very  slight  cleft  in  the  frog,  while  in  the  contracted,  or 


GUARDS  AGAINST  CONCUSSION.  6 

thnishy,  the  frog  becomes  separated,  as  it  were,  in  the  middle.  Ion 
gitudinally,  and  a  deep  crevice  is  found.     The  back  pai't  of  the  foot 
is  foiyiied  thus  : 


And  it  is  evident  that  as  the  weight  is  throwoi  on  the  heel  the  quar- 
ters expand  and  the  frog  rests  on  the  ground.  The  corrugated  shape 
permits  this,  and  when  the  weight  is  removed  the  elastic  media 
brings  it  back  to  the  original  position.  The  ilhistration  re})resents  a 
section  of  the  foot  about  an  inch  in  front  of  where  the  wall  and  bars 
form  an  acute  angle.  The  bar  forms  a  curve  sweeping  from  the 
point  of  the  frog  to  the  junction  above  alluded  to,  and  the  fissure 
between  it  and  the  frog  is  the  deepest  at  the  point  which  the  cut 
delineates.  The  wall  is  much  stronger  at  the  heel  than  what  is 
termed  the  quarters,  and  only  slightly  thinner  than  at  the  toe.  This 
is  necessary  to  withstand  the  concussion,  which  is  the  gi'eatest  at  the 
heel,  and  the  thinner  quarters  admit  of  ♦more  freedom  of  motion. 
The  expansion  is  not  confined  to  the  gi-ound  surface — the  whole  foot, 
from  the  coronary  ligament  to  the  bottom,  expands  and  contracts  as 
the  weight  is  thrown  upon  the  limb,  and  taken  from  it  when  the 
animal  raises  his  foot  to  thi'ust  it  forward.  In  the  unshod,  natural 
foot,  there  is  nothing  to  prevent  this  freedom  of  motion ;  it  is  un- 
fettered, and  performs  its  functions  without  hindrance.  In  the 
gallop  and  the  fast  trot  the  body  is  hurled  through  the  air,  thei'e 
being  a  time  when  all  the  feet  are  off  the  ground.  The  eye  detects 
this  quite  readily  when  the  horse  is  running,  but  it  is  extremely 
difficult  to  discern  it  in  the  trot.  In  the  gallop  the  feet  touch  the 
ground  in  regular  succession,  followed  by  a  bound,  and  the  ear  is 
cognizant  of  the  fact,  if  the  eye  fails  to  be  convinced.     The  sound  of 


4  TIPS  AND  T<JE-WEIGHTS. 

the  gallop  can  be  closely  imitated  by  resting  the  thumb  on  a  table 
and  striking  rapidly  first  with  the  little  finger,  second,  with  the  one 
next  to  it,  then  the  middle  and  fore-finger;  the  interval,  before  the  little 
finger  can  be  brouglit  down  again,  corresponding  to  the  bound  or  leap. 
Only  one  foot  touches  the  ground  at  a  time,  when,  of  course,  the 
whole  weight  must  rest  upon  that  foot,  although  it  is  quickly  relieved 
by  the  other.  As  at  least  two  strides  are  made  in  a  second,  and  as  the 
longer  time  is  occupied  by  the  bound,  the  contact  of  the  foot  with 
the  ground  being  a  small  fraction  of  the  time,  the  duration  lasting 
while  the  body  is  carried  far  enough  forward  to  cause  it  to  be  taken 
up.  One  of  the  fore  feet  supports  the  whole  of  the  weight  of  horse 
and  rider,  while  the  body  is  moved  over  it,  until  it  has  to  leave  the 
ground;  then  the  bound  follows,  and  the  hind  foot  stx-ikes  eighty -six 
inches  beyond  the  imprint  of  the  front  foot. 

In  trotting,  the  feet  are  moved  diagonally,  and  so  nearly  at  the 
same  instant  that  the  ear  also  fails  to^  separate  the  footfalls,  and  the 
sound  of  the  feet  of  a  square  trotter,  at  a  twenty  gait,  has  a  regular 
cadence  like  the  ticking  of  a  pendulum.  The  foot-prints  of  a  race- 
j  horse  show  plainly  the  flight  of  the  body  through  the  air,  and  can  be 
pictured  thus : 

4  3  2  1  4  3  2  1 

We  will  suppose  the  figure  1  to  be  the  right  fore  foot,  2  the  left 
fore  foot,  3  the  right  hind  foot,  and  4  the  other  hind  foot.  The 
length  of  the  stride  is  manifestly  from  where  the  foot  left  the  ground 
until  it  struck  it  again.  In  race-horses  this  will  vary  from  18  to  25 
feet.  The  impress  which  the  trotter  leaves  is  more  nearly  equi- 
distant, thus  : 

4  3  2  14  3  2  1 

and  from  17  to  22  feet  is  the  length  of  the  strides  of  the  fast  trot- 
ters. Adopting  the  same  simile,  from  1  to  1  is  the  space  measured 
by  each  stride,  and  it  is  just  as  evident  that  to  enable  the  animal  to 
strike  the  ground  twenty  feet  in  advance  of  the  position  the  same 
foot  occupied,  the  body  must  be  thrown  through  the  air  when  all  the 
feet  are  off  the  ground.  It  is  also  necessary  that  when  the  foot 
strikes  it  must  be  thrust  forward  as  far  as  it  can  be  aiid  sustain 


BREAKING  THE  JAR.  0 

tlie  equilibrium,  and  hence  the  heel  must  receive  the  firet  shock  of 
the  contact.  Tlte  xohole  concussion  is  vpon  the  heel ;  nearly  the  whole 
of  the  friction  ujwn  the  toe.  How  admirahlj  the  foot  is  fashioned  to 
sustain  this  concussion  and  friction  is  apparent  to  any  one  who  will 
give  it  careful  thought.  When  the  horse  is  at  rest,  nearly  two-thirds 
of  the  weight  is  supported  by  the  fore  feet,  and  the  sound  animal 
does  not  attempt  to  relieve  tiiem  from  the  portion  of  the  weight  it 
is  their  duty  to  sustain.  In  that  case  there  would  be  a  moderate 
expansion  of  the  foot.  When  he  walks,  three  of  the  feet  are  encum- 
bei-ed  by  the  weight,  while  the  fourth  is  moved  forward,  and  the 
foot  which  is  Avithout  a  load  is  contracted,  the  others  more  expanded, 
than  when  the  animal  was  standing.  In  the  trot  of  the  ordinary 
woi'k-horse,  the  pace  is  slow  and  the  stride  short,  the  hind  foot  drop- 
ping into  the  track  of  the  front.  As  velocity  increases  the  force, 
the  slow  trot  is  more  trying  than  the  walk,  while  the  great  rate  of 
the  fast  trotter,  and  the  still  faster  flight  of  the  race-horse,  entails 
the  greatest  possible  concussion,  the  gi-eatest  jar  to  the  feet,  and  the 
greatest  strain  upon  their  mechanism.  When  the  foot  is  free  to 
dilate,  so  as  to  avail  itself  of  the  benefit  of  the  spring  of  the  wall 
from  the  toe  back,  and  the  further  breaking  of  the  jar  by  the  soft 
and  yielding  pad  of  the  frog,  the  great  strain  of  even  the  gallop, 
augmented  by  the  weight  of  the  rider,  can  be  sustained.  The  unshod 
foot  may  wear  away  from  the  friction  of  hard  roads  until  the  pro- 
tecting covering  is  removed  and  the  sensitive  portion  laid  bare,  when 
the  horse  becomes  lame,  but  the  evils  arising  from  concussion  ai'e 
unknown.  In  the  last  year  I  have  inquii-ed  of  at  least  a  hundred 
gentleman  who  were  familiar  with  the  horse  in  early  times  in  Cali- 
fornia, when  shoeing  of  saddle-horses  was  comparatively  unknown, 
if  they  had  ever  known  quartei-oracks  in  this  class  of  horses  1 
"  Never,"  was  the  unanimous  response.  Were  corns  frequent,  or 
bruises  of  the  sole  of  common  occurrence  1  The  answer  would  be  : 
"  I  never  knew  an  unshod  horse  to  have  corns,  and  the  only  draw- 
})ack  was  the  wearing  away  of  the  horn  at  tlie  toe  until  they  became 
lame,  when  the  animal  was  turned  out,  and  a  few  weeks,  especially 
in  the  rainy  season,  furnished  the  remedy."  That  shoeing  is  the 
cause    of   quarter-cracks    and   corns   is    absolutely    proven    by    the 


6  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

absence  of  these  difficulties,  wlien  the  animal  remains  without  these 
artificial  appendages,  and  I  hope  to  show  in  this  essay  that  the 
reasons  for  the  injuiy  are  apparent  after  due  consideration,  and, 
perhaps,  suggest  a  remedy. 

First,  as  to  cracks:  It  is  well  known  that  the  fissure  stai'ts  from 
the  coronet,  in  some  cases  being  less  than  three-quarters  of  an  inch 
in  length.  The  shoe  preventing  the  expansion  of  the  lower  part  of 
the  foot,  the  upper  bursts  the  shell  at  the  thinnest  portion,  as  the 
weight  is  virtually  thrown  upon  it.  Unquestionably  the  horn  in 
some  horses  is  more  disposed  to  crack  than  others,  but  the  feet  which 
have  the  greatest  inclination  to  separation  of  the  horn  are  those 
Avhich  are  the  nearest  vertical,  and  in  which  the  horn  is  usually  the 
thickest.  If  even  the  nailing  does  not  come  further  back  than  the 
ciuarters,  the  fi'iction  between  the  wall  and  the  shoe  soon  wears  a 
channel  which  restrains  the  heels  from  opening,  and  this,  aided  by 
the  greater  concussion  upon  the  wall  which  the  shoe  imparts,  sjilits 
the  fibres  apart.  In  the  foot  which  is  unshod,  the  wall,  the  bars  and 
the  frog  unite  in  supporting  the  weight,  while  the  spring  of  the 
heels  and  the  elasticity  of  the  frog  break  the  jar.  The  common 
practice  of  smitlis  is  to  thicken  the  shoe  at  the  heel  and  make  the 
web  narrower,  which  renders  it  impossible  for  the  bars  and  frog  to 
perform  their  natural  functions.  The  whole  force  of  the  blow,  for 
blow  it  assuredly  is,  comes  upon  the  wall  and  the  junction  of  the 
wall  and  sole  ;  and  confining  that  which  should  expand,  if  there  is 
any  brittleness  it  gives  away.  We  have  heard  it  stated  that  the 
cause  of  quarter-cracks  w^as  the  contraction  of  the  hoof,  forcing- 
upward  the  coffin  bone  until  the  wing^  wore  the  shell  so  thin  that 
it  split  from  the  erosion.  So  absurd  is  this  theory  that  it  is  difficult 
to  believe  that  it  could  ever  have  been  entertained  by  any  one  who 
had  given  the  horse's  foot  the  least  attention;  but  my  informant 
hinted  that  it  was  part  of  the  teachings  of  a  man  who  claims  to  have 
made  discoveries  that  are  of  vast  importance,  and  which  have  been 
sustained  by  men  of  wisdom  and  acumen.  Inasmuch  as  part  of  the 
teachmgs  of  this  gentleman  are  covered  by  the  seal  of  secrecy,  it  may 
be  that  this  is  one  of  his  esoterical  points.  It  is  obvious,  however, 
that  the  wearing  of  the  horn  by  the  bone  would  result  in  something 


ROUND-HOOF  D. 

far  more  serious  than  quarter-cracks,  and  before  the  grinding  of  the 
wall  had  reached  the  point  of  cracking  there  would  not  be  any  foot 
to  split.  That  the  shoe  confines  the  foot  is  easily  proven  by  com- 
paring the  foot  of  a  horse  which  has  never  worn  shoes  and  one  with 
these  appendages.  The  first  is  susceptible  of  being  forced  to  quite  a 
distance  by  a  slight  pull  ;  the  other  cannot  be  moved  a  hair's  breadth 
bv  the  stronofest  effort  of  the  hand.  Take  the  unshod  foot  between 
the  knees  in  the  same  manner  a  blacksmith  holds  it  when  preparing 
it  for  or  nailing  on  the  shoe,  and  grasping  the  heels,  with  the  thumbs 
bearing  on  the  commissures,  and  the  yielding  is  not  only  felt,  but  is 
apparent  to  the  eye.  Grasp  the  foot  higher  up  and  the  fact  of  the 
contraction  and  expansion  of  the  upper  part  of  the  foot  is  also  ascer- 
tained. Taking  the  shod  foot,  especially  one  that  has  been  shod  for 
yeai-s,  and  while  the  lower  motion  is  entirely  gone,  that  below  the 
coronet  has  been  very  much  lessened.  In  the  natural  foot  the  frog 
is  wide,  and  as  was  remarked  before,  the  cleft  of  it  is  shallow.  In 
the  shod  one  the  frog  has  dwindled  to  one-half  its  original  proportion, 
is  hard,  Avithout  elasticity,  and  in  many  cases  the  blade  of  a  knife 
can  be  run  into  the  cleft  an  inch  or  more.  Another  great  change 
will  be  observed.  The  foot,  in  its  normal  condition,  is  wider  than  it 
is  long.  In  the  artificial  state,  induced  by  shoeing,  it  is  much 
longer  than  wide.  The  nai-rowing  or  contraction  of  the  heel  has 
lessened  the  transverse  measurement  and  increased  the  longitudinal. 
The  absence  of  corns  in  the  unshod  foot  proves  that  the  concussion 
is  the  most  violent  between  the  shoe  and  the  foot,  for  if  these 
troublesome  things  resulted  from  contact  with  the  ground,  the  want 
of  shoes  would  be  favorable  for  their  production. 

The  following  cut  shows  the  ground  surface  of  the  foot,  and  the  pecu- 
liarities of  foi-mation,  which  the  previous  illustration  only  partially 
represented,  are  here  passably  portrayed.  It  is  very  difiicult  to  give 
a  draughtsman  a  proper  idea  of  the  shape  of  the  natural  foot,  unless 
the  animal  can  be  present.  Few  of  the  drawings  of  the  horse's  foot 
which  are  given  in  the  books  are  correct  in  showing  the  natural  foot, 
the  artists  evidently  having  taken  their  "studies"  from  specimens 
which  had  been  changed  by  shoeing.  The  frog  is  usually  represented 
as  much  muTOwer  than  when  in  a  normal  condition,  and  the  coia- 


8  TIPS  AND  TOE-AVEIGHTS. 

niissures  also  more  contracted  and  with  different  outlines.  The 
widest  part  of  these  channels  is  about  midway  between  the  point  of 
the  frog  and  the  heel,  the  outward  line  having  quite  a  curvature, 
the  inner,  or  that  side  which  is  formed  by  tlie  frog,  being"  nearly 
straight.  The  commissures  are  also  the  deepest  at  this  point,  so  that 
there  is  an  arched  line  running  from  the  point  of  the  frog  to  the 
heel.  It  is  evident  that  the  dilatation,  when  the  weight  is  thrown 
on  the  foot,  is  made  easy  by  this  formation,  and  consequently  the 
contraction,  when  the  weight  is  removed,  is  imperative. 


That  these  are  natural  and  essential  functions  is  almost  discover- 
able from  the  study  of  the  cut,  without  further  knowledge.  The 
thicker  horn  at  the  toe,  which  is  diminished  at  the  quarter  and  again 
increased  at  the  heel,  proves  that  the  greatest  wear  will  be  at  these 
points ;  or  rather,  that '  these  extremities  are  the  most  thoroughly 
protected  by  the  natui-al  growth,  while  the  more  yielding  quarters 
afford  the  necessary  elasticity.  The  deposit  of  horn  is  greater  at 
the  toe  and  heel,  which  gives  the  natui-al  foot  something  of  the  shape 
of  the  human  pedal.  This  does  away  with  the  violent  concussion  at 
the  weakest  part  of  the  foot,  throwing  the  work  of  sustaining  the 
shock  of  rapid  locomotion  on  the  heel  and  the  frog,  while  the  toe 
sustains  the  friction  of  retainiiig  the  hold  of  the  ground  until  the  foot 


DILATATION  AND  CONTRACTION.  9 

be  again  elevated.  While  the  sole  performs  its  part  in  sustaining 
the  weight,  that  part  is  very  slight  on  even,  soft  ground. 

Experiments  have  proven  that  the  sole  may  be  entirely  removed 
without  the  bones  descending  from  their  position,  the  coronary  liga- 
ment, and  the  tendons  which  run  between  the  navicular  bone  and  the 
sensitive  frog,  being  sufficient  to  carry  the  weight.  Veterinarians 
have  argued  that  the  descent  of  the  sole  proves  that  at  times  thei-e  is 
gi-eat  weight  thrown  on  this  part  of  the  foot,  and  point  to  a  large 
and  wide-heeled  foot  as  the  most  likely  to  suflfer  in  this  way.  There 
mav  be  other  causes  which  conduce  to  this  state,  and  these  causes  we 
will  consider  hereafter.  To  digi-ess,  however,  in  this  connection  it 
may  be  as  well  to  describe  another  portion  of  the  foot  which  has  a 
great  deal  to  do  in  sustaining  the  weight,  and  that  is  the  lamince, 
or  thin  plates  which  interlace  from  the  wall  and  the  coffin  bone. 
There  are  about  five  hundred  of  these  plates,  and  they  come  together 
much  the  same  as  would  the  leaves  of  two  books,  if  they  were  locked  at 
their  edges.  With  even  a  slight  pressure  from  the  sides,  it  will  be 
found  that  it  takes  considerable  force  to  push  them  apart ;  and  the 
five  hundred  Icwiince,  thin  as  they  are,  aid  very  materiall}'  not  only 
in  sustaining  the  weight,  but  also  in  breaking  the  jar.  These  lam- 
ince permit  the  dilatation  and  contraction  without  injurious  results, 
as  would  be  the  case  were  the  interior  surface  of  the  wall  and  the 
outward  portion  of  the  bones  smooth.  In  the  latter  case  there  would 
be  nothing  to  hold  them  in  position  while  the  foot  was  expanded,  and 
there  would  be  a  space  between. 

The  cut  in  the  previous  article  showed  the  section  of  the  foot  an 
inch  in  advance  of  the  heel  and  where  the  commissures  are  the  deepest, 
but  as  that  becomes  shallower  there  is  less  depth  of  horn  to  move, 
and  less  is  required.  The  elasticity  of  the  upper  poi-tion  of  the  foot 
is  the  greatest  at  the  back  part  of  the  coronary  ligament,  and  the 
equilibrium  of  expansion  is  thus  retained. 

Miles,  in  his  essay  on  horse-shoeing,  wrote  :  "  Unless  the  nail- 
holes  are  placed  so  that  the  foot  can  expand,  it  must  in  the  end  be- 
come unsound."  "Frank  Forester"  thought  so  highly  of  his  treatise 
that  he  embodied  it  in  his  woi-k,  and  prefaced  it  with  unqualified 
praise,  and  his  opinion  was  coincided  in  by  the  best  informed  horse- 


10  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

men  of  the  time.  He  expected  to  overcome  the  difficulty  by 
placing  three  nails  on  the  outside  of  the  foot,  and  two  on  the  inside, 
near  the  toe.  He- also  claimed  that  "The  portioii  of  the  hoof  that 
expands  the  most  is  the  inner  quarter  and  heel."  The  horn  on  the 
inner  quarter  is  slightly  thinner  tlian  on  the  outside,  but  there  is  a 
greater  concussion  on  the  outside,  which  makes  the  thicker  horn  give 
more.  But  it  is  recently  that  the  expansion  of  the  foot  has  been 
considered  unnecessary,  and  that  only  by  a  few. 

The  cuts  show  as  conclusively  as  that  twice  two  are  four,  that 
there  are  natural  provisions  for  expansion,  and  as  the  "  good  mother  " 
is  usually  correct  in  her  doings,  we  will  accept  it  as  the  proper  thing 
to  follow.  "  Contraction  "  is  claimed  by  many  to  be  the  result  of 
disease  ;  others  contend  that  contraction  produces  disease  of  the  foot. 
It  is  immatei'ial  which  is  correct  so  far  as  regards  the  consideration 
of  the  evils  of  the  present  system  of  shoeing,  as  the  fact  of  it  being 
apparent  in  nearly  every  horse  which  has  been  shod  for  a  series  of 
years  is  sufficient  to  warn  us  that  something  must  be  done  to  counter- 
act this  tendency. 

•Mr.  Miles  was  not  alone  in  advising  that  the  nailing  should  be  con- 
fined to  the  anterior  of  the  foot,  Mr.  Coleman,  Professor  of  the  Royal 
Veterinary  College,  having  preceded  him  in  this  recommendation. 
He  taught  in  liis  lectures  to  the  students,  "  that,  for  a  good  natural 
foot,  all  that  is  required  by  way  of  a  shoe  is  to  guard  the  crust  b}'^ 
a  small  and  narrow  piece  of  iron,  which  should  be  attached  princi- 
pally at  the  toe."  Mr.  Bracey  Clark,  one  of  the  foremost  writers  on 
the  pathology  of  the  horse's  foot,  noted  the  effect  of  shoeing  was 
usually  to  contract  the  foot,  and  his  instructions  were  to  leave  the 
sole,  bars  and  frog  in  the  natural  state  ;  and  having  seen  ill  effects 
follow  the  non-nailing  at  the  heels,  from  sand  getting  between  the 
shoe  and  foot,  and  more  concussion,  he  nailed  back  to  the  posterior 
extremity.  It  is  useless  to  multiply  the  evidence  of  those  who  join 
in  denouncing  the  ordinary  system  of  shoeing,  and  who  have  proven 
the  injuries  which  have  followed.  It  would  be  far  beyond  the  limits 
of  this  essay  to  note  the  various  o})inions  which  have  been  given, 
and  to  record  the  acrimonious  debates  between  partisans  of  the  dif- 
ferent schools.     Treatment  as  opposite  as  the  antipodes  has  been  au- 


WEIGHT  CONTROLS  THE  ACTION.  11 

thoritatively  recominenJed,  and  between  these  multitudes  of  counselors 
the  poor  horse  has  sadly  suffered.  The  horse  must  be  shod  is  taken  as 
an  axiom,  but  yet  we  tind  some  of  the  most  intelligent  of  the  pres- 
ent trainei-s  of  race-horses  galloping  them  without  any  protection  to 
the  foot.  On  the  soft  dirt  of  a  carefully  kept  race-coui"se  there  is 
little,  if  any,  necessity  for  protecting  the  hoof;  but  in  California, 
where  the  courses  are  hard,  the  wearing  away  of  the  toe  has  to  be 
guarded  against. 

It  has  been  deemed  essential  that  something  should  intervene  be- 
tween the  foot  and  the  gi-ound  "  to  break  the  jar"  consequent  on  the 
weight  of  the  animal  coming  with  such  force  upon  the  extremities, 
and  the  harder  the  track,  the  opinion  of  a  majority  of  race-horse 
trainei-s  has  been  that  a  heavier  shoe  was  required.  I  do  not 
think  it  will  need  much  ai'gument  to  shoAv  that  the  "jar"  is  greater 
the  heavier  the  shoe,  and  also  that  there  is  greater  strain  on  the  limbs. 
The  iron  is  unyielding,  and  without  elasticity,  in  the  sense  we  call 
the  foot  of  the  horse  elastic.  Weight  induces  higher  action  aiul  a 
longer  stride,  and  hence  there  must  be  greater  force  in  the  blow  when 
the  foot  strikes  the  ground.  The  hard  metal,  while  it  protects  the 
horn  from  being  shattered  by  guarding  the  edge,  impinges  on  the  an- 
gle made  by  the  bars  and  wall,  resulting  in  corns  and  Ijjfuises.  Un- 
fortunately, that  is  not  the  greatest  injury.  The  expansion  is  ham- 
pered, if  not  completely  stopjDed  ;  the  sole  and  frog  are  not  permitted 
to  bear  their  due  proportion  of  the  weight  ;  the  latter  becomes  atro- 
phied, and  the  former  loses  its  natural  properties. 

Great  masses  of  iron  nailed  to  the  horse's  foot  have  been  the  weak- 
ness of  shoeing-smiths  of  the  last  two  centuries,  and  Mr.  Clark  gives 
ill  ustrations  of  the  forms  which  many  then  held  to  be  correct.  The  web 
covei'ed  nearly  the  whole  sole,  there  being  only  a  small  circular  opening 
at  the  point  of  the  frog,  and  a  triangular  one  under  it.  Calkins 
were  turned  at  the  heel,  and  this  ponderous  body  was  fastened  to  the 
foot  by  fourteen  or  fifteen  nails.  Horses  which  had  gone  lame  Avhile 
shod  with  this  niyhtmare  of  a  shoe,  recovered  with  the  narrow,  con- 
caved one  which  Mr.  Clark  used,  notwithstanding  the  foot  was  fet- 
tered from  the  toe  to  the  heel.  The  Duke  of  Newcastle  saw  that  for 
horses  of  the  "  mannage,"  and  for  those  which  were  used  for  hunting 


12  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

and  hacks,  there  was  an  impropriety  in  thus  loading  them,  and  i-ecom- 
mended  a  lighter  shoe.  For  horses  of  heavy  draught  it  is  still 
held  to  be  necessary  to  have  iron,  in  mass  according  to,  and  being 
in  harmony  with,  the  size  of  the  animal,  claiming  that  on  the  pave- 
ments a  lighter  shoe  would  soon  wear  out.  As  the  wear  is  nearly  all 
confined  to  the  toe,  the  greater  part  of  this  could  be  dispensed  with. 
But  there  is  one  class  of  horses  which  must  have  weight  on  their 
feet,  or  some  contrivance  which  will  have  the  same  effect  on  the  action 
as  weight,  and  this  is  the  fast  trotter,  or,  at  least,  a  great  many  of  the 
very  fastest.  Thus,  a  little  mare  like  May  Queen  has  to  wear  a  shoe 
weighing  twenty-four  ounces  on  each  fore  foot,  and  Jenny  had  a  still 
heavier  incumbrance,  with  a  "  toe- weight"  of  like  ponderosity  added. 
That  these  two  mares  could  make  "  a  record"  of  2:20  and  2:22  while 
thus  loaded,  proves  that  the  benefit  to  the  action  offsets  the  disad- 
vantages. Jenny  made  one  brilliant  season,  and  then  had  to  be  re- 
tired until  her  legs  recovered  from  the  strain.  Nettie,  another  first- 
class  animal  which  has  to  be  burdened  in  the  same  manner,  has  several 
times  been  troubled  "  with  a  leg,"  and  these  appliances  have  been  con- 
demned on  account  of  the  greater  liability  to  the  tendons  being  in- 
jured when  they  were  used.  When  tl\e  time  for  the  consideration  of 
the  toe-weighf^iore  appropriately  comes,  I  will  endeavor  to  show  that 
it  is  not  a  necessary  sequence  to  their  use,  but  results  from  a  wrong 
understanding  of  how  they  should  be  applied.  If  the  proper  action 
can  be  obtained,  and  the  foot  properly  pi'otected,  I  imagine  few  will 
disagree  with  me,  that  the  lighter  the  weight  of  the  shoe  the  better  it 
will  be  for  the  animal  wearing  it.  The  pedestrian,  when  he  has  a 
distance  to  go  at  his  best  pace — say  a  run  of  a  mile — wears  shoes 
which  are  only  a  few  ounces  in  weight,  with  spikes  to  prevent  him 
losing  ground  by  slipping.  If  he  is  going  to  walk  a  long  journey,  he 
wears  a  thick-soled  shoe  with  light  xippers.  This  has  been  offered  as 
an  argument  favoring  heavy  shoes  on  horses,  but  there  is  not  the 
least  analogy  between  the  two.  The  Indian  performs  great  feats 
with  only  moccasins  to  protect  his  feet ;  those  of  the  white  man  are 
tender  from  always  having  a  stronger  protection  to  guard  them,  and 
have  become  more  sensitive  to  pressure  and  more  liable  to  bruises. 
But  there  is  scarcely  anything  parallel  in  the  human  and  equine  foot. 


TIGHT  BOOTS.  13 

The  man  has  the  whole  bearijig  from  the  os  ccdc'is  to  the  metatarsals; 
the  horse  has  a  point  in  comparison,  the  part  corresponding  to  the 
human  heel  forming  the  point  of  the  hock,  while  the  foot  has  only 
tlu'ee  comparatively  small  bones  to  sustain  the  whole  of  the  shock. 
Again,  these  bones  are  enclosed  in  a  box  with,  a  very  slight  interpo- 
sition, and  when  this  box  becomes  narrowed  it  is  something  like  the 
old  instrument  of  torture,  the  iron  boot,  with  wedges  and  screws 
to  compress  the  enclosed  limb.  Those  who  have  worn  a^  tight- 
fitting  boot  know  what  the  pain  is  without  the  addition  of  wedge 
and  screw. 

An  acquaintance  who  was  fond  of  horses,  and  paid  a  good  deal  of 
attention  to  them,  had  purchased  a  new  pair  of  hunting  boots,  and 
spent  several  days  on  the  large  islands  in  the  upper  Mississippi,  duck- 
shooting.  They  had  stiff  quarters,  and  the  heels  were  rather  too  narrow 
for  his  feet.  He  suffered  a  good  deal  while  tramping  over  the  wet 
ground,  but  the  excitement  of  the  sport  sustained  him,  and  though 
he  "  hobbled  "  along  in  the  morning,  once  fairly  warmed  to  his  work, 
the  pain  was  unheeded  when  the  whirr  of  the  rapid  flight  of  the  teal 
or  mallard  was  heard.  Even  when  lying  by  the  camp-fire  with  the 
obnoxious  boots  removed,  there  was  a  good  deal  of  suffering  ;  but 
the  solace  of  some  of  "  Billy  G's  "  doubled-distilled  qjid  a  pipe  of 
fragrant  kinnikinick  made  it  endurable.  When  he  got  home  he  was 
nearly  tired  out,  and  the  bed  was  welcomed  only  as  one  who  has 
cami)ed  for  a  week  on  a  Mississippi  island  can  greet  it.  Rip  Van 
Winkle  never  slept  sounder,  until  the  burning,  compressed  quarters 
partially  awoke  him.  He  fancied  his  pedal  extremities  had  changed, 
and  in  lieu  of  a  fairly-shaped  "  No.  7  "  the  hoofs  of  a  horse  were 
substituted.  His  meanings  awoke  his  wife,  and  her  inquiry  of 
"  What  is  the  matter  2"  elicited  the  response,  "  If  you  do  not  send 
me  to  the  shop  and  have  my  shoes  pulled  off,  my  feet  will  be  ruined." 

"  What  on  earth  do  you  mean  by  having  your  shoes  pulled  off  at 
the  shop  1 "  was  the  next  qiiery. 

"  Wliy,"  he  replied,  "  my  feet  are  badly  contracted,  and  these  shoes 
ai-e  holding  the  quarters  as  though  they  were  in  a  vise,  and  if  they 
are  not  removed,  and  I  am  allowed  to  run  barefoot  for  a  while,  my 
feet  will  be  ruined  entirely." 


14  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

Tliorouglily  alarmed,  tliinking  lie  had  become  insane,  his  wife 
jumped  out  of  bed,  turned  up  the  night-lamp,  and  anxiously  looked 
for  some  further  token  of  his  lunacy,  and  it  was  only  after  taking  hold 
of  his  feet  and  thrusting  them  from  under  the  bed-clothes  so  that  he 
could  see  them,  that  he  was  convinced  that  it  was  a  phantasy. 

Compassionate  before,  ever  after  that  hallucination  the  best  care 
was  taken  of  the  feet  of  his  horses.  He  has  made  the  subject  of 
shoeing  a  study,  and  has  suggested  many  things  to  ameliorate  the  ill- 
efiects  arising  therefrom. 


CHAPTER  II, 

Guards  Against  Concussion — An  Elastic  Shoe- 
Stonehenge  on  Tips— Etc. 


Pressure  on  the  sole  causes  pain — -that  is,  a  clegi'ee  of  pi'ossure  which 
is  less  than  might  be  inflicted  by  a  stone  striking  the  sole  at  the  junc- 
tion of  the  wall  and  sole.  This  is  proved  by  pulling  off  a  shoe  with 
pincers,  for  if  it  does  not  yield  readily  the  horse  will  flinch  when  the 
'*  purchase  "  is  on  the  sole.  The  more  central  poi-tion  is  not  so  sensi- 
tive, and  the  anterior  part  is  so  strongly  formed  that  heavy  blows  do 
not  produce  pain.  In  the  natural,  unshod  foot  the  wear  is  so  slight 
at  the  quarters  and  heel  that  the  horn  of  the  wall  and  bars  projects 
enough  to  guard  the  sensitive  pai'ts,  and  a  further  guai-antee  against 
injury  is  the  elasticity  of  the  natural  sole  and  the  spring  of  the  frog. 
No  matter  how  heavy  the  shoe  which  is  used,  there  must  be  violent 
concussion  when  the  foot  strikes  the  ground,  when  the  natural  spring- 
is  rendered  unavailable.  The  heavy  freight-wagons  of  the  cities, 
which  have  springs  under  the  bed  sustaining  the  load,  are  found  to 
last  much  longer  than  those  which  ai-e  without  these  appliances  to 
moderate  the  shocks  of  the  pavements.  The  wheels,  axles,  and  even 
the  tires  do  not  wear  in  the  same  proportion,  and  the  draft  is  also 
lessened.  Without  springs  the  jar  is  sudden,  and  the  impinging 
force  has  nothing  to  break  it.  ^y'ithout  beiug  accurately  a  pai-allel 
case  to  the  foot  of  the  horse,  there  is  a  good  deal  of  analogy  between 
them.  The  living  tissue,  Avliile  it  is  more  sensitive,  repairs  itself 
when  permitted  to  rest ;  recuperates  when  the  cause  of  the  injury  is 
removed.    A  shoe  with  the  web  so  wide  that  it  would  cover  the  bars. 


16         .  THE  WALL  AND  SOLE. 

and  press  equally  on  them  and  the  wall,  would  be  preferable  to  one 
which  brought  the  whole  of  the  bearing  on  the  outside  crust.  The 
former  would  distribute  the  blow  over  a  wider  surface,  while  the  lat- 
ter would  confine  it  to  the  part  most  keenly  sensitive  of  any  portion 
of  the  foot. 

The  wall  and  sole  are  fastened  together  by  agglutination,  and 
maceration  will  separate  them.  Corns  are  produced  at  the  junction 
and  in  the  angles  which  the  bars  form  ;  and  bruises,  at  times,  result 
in  serious  diseases.  From  the  bruise  the  living  tissues  are  affected 
and  pus  is  created.  This  cannot  work  through  the  honiy  covering, 
and  the  suppuration  has  to  find  vent  at  the  coronet.  Oftentimes  a 
horse,  after  being  veiy  lame,  recovers  when  the  opening  takes  place, 
and  the  general  verdict  is  that  a  gravel  has  been  embedded  in  the 
foot  and  worked  througli,  as  all  foreign  substances  have  to  take  this 
upwiird  direction  before  they  can  be  got  rid  of.  Bruise,  or  a  suppur- 
ating corn  caused  by  the  impact  of  the  shoe,  is  the  true  explanation 
of  the  trouble.  AmoDg  several  other  shoes  which  I  have  experi- 
mented with  was  one  formed  with  two  plates,  between  which  was  a 
stratum  of  rubber.  Finding  that  the  elastic  material  placed  between 
the  shoe  and  the  foot  was  liable  to  misplacement,  the  plan  was  adopted 
of  fixing  it  by  two  plates.  The  trial  was  satisfactory,  and  the  benefit 
of  this  shoe  was  evident.  Acting  like  the  spring  under  the  load  on 
the  wagon  or  car,  it  moderated  the  concussion  and  broke  the  jar. 
But  the  difficulty  remained,  the  trouble  arising  from  the  stress  which 
was  put  on  the  wall. 

To  get  the  amount  of  metal  which  would  withstand  the  wear  of 
macadamized  roads,  necessarily  made  this  shoe  thick,  and  the  foot 
was  raised  too  high  from  the  ground.  And  finding' that  the  concus- 
sion was  only  detrimental  at  the  posterior  portion  of  the  foot,  a  .shoe 
was  made  like  the  cut  on  the  following  page. 

The  gi'ound  surface,  which  is  shown  by  Figure  1,  was  made  wide  at 
the  heels,  giving  a  full  bearing  on  the  wall  and  bars,  and  the  elastic 
material  was  confined  to  this  part  of  the  shoe  as  shown  by  Fig.  2. 
The  covering  of  all  of  the  foot,  save  the  frog  and  so  much  of  the  sole  as 
is  anterior  to  it  gave — as  nearly  as  possible — a  natural  bearing,  and 
by  extending  the  surface  the  elastic  material  was  increased  in  volume. 


ARTIFICIAL  REQUIREMENTS. 


17 


This  shoe  was  very  satisfactory,  and  obviated  many  of  the  difficul- 
ties. It  was  an  endeavor  to  approximate  to  the  teachings  of  nature, 
and,  like  many  others,  I  was  ready  to  shout  with  the  Greek  philoso- 
pher, "  I  have  found  it  I"  It  may  prove  that  this  is  a  pattern  shoe, 
and  the  necessities  of  domestication  require  something  of  the  kind. 
But  so  far  I  am  convinced  that  the  principle  is  wrong,  and  the  sim- 
ple plan  is  to  follow  nature  literally  so  far  as  ai'tificial  requirements 


will  permit.  Before  giving  the  results  of  late  experiments,  I  will 
call  attention  to  the  following  extract  by  Mr.  J.  H.  Walsh,  F.  R. 
C.  S.  ("  Stonehenge'.;)  : 

"  Before  proceeding  to  describe  the  various  methods  adopted  in  shoe- 
ing the  horse,  it  will  be  well  to  consider  whether  it  is  necessary  to 
protect  his  feet  in  this  way  at  all.  This  has  been  doubted  by  many, 
and  an  attempt  has  recently  been  made  by  Lieutenant  Perry  to  prove 
that  even  in  this  country  a  horse  can  work  on  our  roads  unshod.  His 
opinion,  and  that  of  the  few  who  coincide  with  him  is,  that  if  the 
foot  is  gradually  accustomed  to  the  friction  of  the  road,  it  will  secrete 


18  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

a  stronger  horn,  and  throw  it  out  more  rapidly,  so  that  it  will  bear 
the  enormous  wear  and  tear  which  its  use  on  our  macadamized  road 
entails  upon  this  organ.  This  argument  is  supported  by  numberless 
instances  abroad,  in  which  horses  are  used  without  shoes  ;  but  it  does 
not  follow  that  because  they  will  bear  the  friction  and  blows  inciden- 
tal to  one  kind  of  surface,  a  different  one  will  not  lame  them.  Every 
experiment  which  has  been  made  in  this  country  of  working  horses 
unshod  has  turned  out  a  failure,  and  in  Lieutenant  Perry's  case  the 
mare  on  which  he  tried  the  plan  became  so  sore  that  his  commanding 
officer  interposed  to  prevent  a  further  continuance  of  the  trial.  It  can 
only  therefore  be  considered  conclusive  by  those  who  are  willing  to 
take  the  opinion  of  a  Colonel  of  Engineers  as  o})posed  to  a  subaltern 

officer which  is  the  position  in  which  tliis  single  experiment  stands. 

Every  horseman  knows  that  without  a  gradual  seasoning  there  is  no 
doubt  about  the  foot  being  too  weak  to  stand  the  wear  of  the  road, 
and  therefore  unless  the  trial  is  made  under  every  advantage,  it  goes 
for  nothing ;  and  the  mere  fact  that  a  horse,  after  losing  a  shoe,  can 
hardly  be  taken  home  without  breaking  his  foot,  proves  nothing,  be- 
cause it  may  be  alleged  that  the  same  animal,  if  left  unshod,  would 
in  course  of  time  secrete  a  horn  so  tough  and  hard  that  it  would  be 
capable  of  bearing  any  amount  of  friction.     Judging  from  those  cases 
in  which  I  have   seen  the    plan   partially   tried,  with  tips   instead 
of  full  shoes,  I  believe' it.  is  impossible  to  make  it  succeed  with  high- 
actioned  horses  on  our  roads  during  the  summer  seasons,  for  even 
with  that  protection  the  heels  and  frog  become  very  thin,  and  I  am 
satisfied  that  the  toes,  if  unprotected,  would  wear  or  break  away  to  the 
quick  in  a  very  short  time.      Whether  it  is  possible  to  work  any  horse, 
possessing  an  average  foot,  with  tips  only,  on  our  roads,  I  am  by  no 
means  prepared  to  say,  but  that  some  horses  can  do  so  I  know  from 
positive  experience.     The  heels  wear  thin,  but  do  not  become  bruised, 
and  the  horny  matter  of  the  ft'og  is  renewed  as  fast  as  it  is  required. 
Undoubtedly  the  toes,  when  unshod,  are  much  more  exposed  to  injury 
than  the  heels,  especially  in  those  horses  whose  action  is  inclined  to  make 
that  part  touch  the  ground  first,  for  there  is  a  tendency  to  break  as 
well  as  wear  away.     It  is  also  an  admitted  fact,  that  many  thousands 
of  horses  are  annually  lamed  by  the  present  system,  and  thei-efore  I 


UNFETTERED  QUARTERS,  19 

should  much  like  the  system  of  shoemg  with  tips  tried  on  a  large 
scale.  The  question  is,  whether  those  horses  who  bring  their  heels 
down  first  would  be  able  to  bear  the  bruising  of  the  frog  which  this 
action  causes  ;  and  if  not,  it  Avould  always  be  a  doubtful  point  which 
must  be  left  to  the  discretion  of  the  smith,  whether  every  individual 
horse  should  be  shod  in  one  way  or  the  other.  Unless,  therefore, 
tips  could  be  used  in  a  vast  majority  of  cases,  I  do  not  expect  much 
good  from  their  introduction." 

It  is  evident  from  the  quotation,  that  "  Stonehenge "  thought 
highly  of  tips  from  a  theoretical  standpoint,  but  was  afraid  to 
recommend  their  adoption  until  they  had  been  further  tested  by  a 
more  general  use.  The  only  drawback,  he  said,  was  the  wearing  of 
the  heel  and  frog,  the  liability  to  bruises  not  being  deemed  more 
likely  than  with  the  ordinary  shoes. 

His  qualifying  sentence  of  "unless,  therefoi-e,  tips  could  be  used 
in  a  vast  majority  of  cases,  I  do  not  expect  much  good  from  their- 
introduction,"  is  not  sound.  If  tips  prove  greatly  superior  for  the- 
fast  trotter,  the  roadster,  the  race-horse  in  ti'aining,  and  other  hoi'ses 
that  have  light,  fast  work,  it  is  not  necessary  that  they  should,  be 
worn  on  the  coach  or  heavy  draught-horses. 

The  advantages  of  having  the  quai-ters  unfettered,  and  a  pcoper 
pressure  on  the  sole  and  frog,  are  apparent  to  any  one  who  has  ^^en 
the  requisite  thought  to  the  anatomy  of  the  foot  and  requirements 
of  nature.  If  some  of  the  purposes  wliich  the  domestication  of  the 
horse  has  entailed  be  antagonistical  to  the  wearing  of  tips,  aiul,  com- 
pel the  use  of  the  full  shoe,  the  trouble  will  be  wif '"  that  class  of 
duties.  In  our  opinion,  however,  it  has  not  been  proven  that  such 
a  state  exists,  and  that  a  horse  with  a  sound  foot  will  wx>."k  -nrith 
them  in  any  situation. 

The  ordinary  shoe,  with  high,  sharp  calkins,  would  seem  to.  be  in- 
dispensable on  frozen,  ice-covered  roads.  With  a  low,  keen  projec- 
tion on  the  toe  of  the  fore  foot,  and  the  hind  foot  shod  in  the  usual 
mannei-,  there  would  be  little,  if  any,  danger  of  slipping  on  the  ice. 
The  frog  has  quite  an  adhesive  property  when  permitted  to  grow ; 
it  retains  its  full  power  by  constant  usage,  and  the  toe  would  be 
the  only  point  which  would  be  likely  to  slip. 


20  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

The  liiiid  feet  have  ca  double  duty  to  perform,  viz.:  propelling  the 
body,  and  bringing  it  to  a  stop — at  times  suddenly.  The  greatest 
strain  is  upon  the  toe  in  the  first  and  the  heel  in  the  last.  Fortu- 
nately, the  hind  foot,  when  compared  with  the  front,  has  almost  a 
complete  immunity  from  diseases  which  are  so  common  in  the 
anterior  supports,  and  wliile  there  would  be  advantages  in  having 
this  as  free  as  possible,  if  necessary  it  can  be  made  to  wear  what- 
ever is  required  to  guard  against  slipping,  and  make  its  powers  of 
propulsion  and  stopping  more  effective. 

The  pavements  of  a  city  are  not  so  wearing  to  the  foot  as  those 
roadways  which  are  covered  with  gravel  or  broken  stones.  Calkins 
do  not  protect  the  feet  on  cobble-stones  or  the  Belgian  blocks,  and 
the  -wear  to  the  heels  and  frog  upon  them  would  not  equal  the 
natural  growth. 

Placing  a  shoe  on  the  di-aught-horse's  foot,  which  is  elevated  from 
an  inch  to  an  inch  and  a  half  by  the  high  "  corks  "  wdiich  the  owner 
directs  the  blacksmith  to  forge,  takes  away  a  great  deal  of  his  power. 
It  places  him  at  a  disadvantage  to  use  his  strength,  and  makes  a 
strain  upon  the  wall  of  the  foot.  Were  the  same  danger  to  exist 
from  this  cause  as  results  from  the  concussion  attending  a  high  rate 
of  speed,  the  feet  of  the  work-horses  would  be  in  a  sad  state  after  a 
short  time.  The  slow  pace  moderates  the  concussion,  and  the  damage 
is  not  so  apparent.  Horses  Avhich  have  to  go  fast  are  the  ones  which 
absolutely  require  an  improvement  in  the  manner  of  shoeing,  and 
though  confident  that  the  best  for  them  would  also  be  the  best  for 
the  work-horse,  the  consideration  will  be  restricted  to  the  class  I 
have  designated. 

The  various  shoes  which  have  been  in  use  for  the  past  twenty 
years  have  some  radical  defect,  owing  to  a  ^jrejiidice  which  all  have 
entertained  for  complete  protection  of  the  horse's  foot.  Because  men 
would  cripple  when  walking  barefoot  over  a  compai'atively  smooth 
surface,  it  was  supposed  that  the  horse  would  be  subject  to  the  same 
inconvenience,  and  sornething  between  the  foot  and  the  ground  was 
held  essential  for  their  comfort.  Although  the  physical  formation  of 
the  man  and  animal  be  something  alike,  the  feet  are  opposite  as 
can  be.     Man  has  the  whole  bearing  from  the  os  colds  to  the  end  of 


THE  ENGLISH  GREYHOUND.  21 

the  toes,  and  the  metatarsals  are  arched  so  that  there  is  a  spi-iiig  from 
the  heels  to  the  toe.  The  only  protection  which  nature  has  given  is 
the  disposition  of  the  skin  on  the  sole  of  the  foot  to  thicken  by  usage 
and  become  much  harder  when  exposed.  Still,  it  is  only  skin,  and 
quite  pliant,  even  when  the  tliickest.  As  I  have  remarked  before, 
the  horse  has  thi-ee  small  bones  encased  in  horn,  and  the  os  calcis,  in 
place  of  touching  the  gro.und,  is  elevated  from  twenty-two  to  twenty- 
five  inches  above  it.  Nature  has  given  ample  protection  from  usual 
occurrences  in  the  thick,  hard  wall,  and  quickly-growing  sole  and 
frog. 

The  foot  of  a  man  can  be  encased  in  a  boot  or  shoe,  which  scarcely 
interferes  with  the  greatest  freedom  of  action,  and  yet,  when  called 
upon  for  rapid  exertion,  the  usual  covering  is  found  to  be  detrimental, 
and  a  lighter  shoe,  and  one  which  does  not  hamper,  takes  the  place  of 
the  ordinary  one.  * 

The  first  articles  illustrated  how  nature  had  provided  for  the  free- 
dom of  the  horse's  foot,  and  how  completely  it  was  fettered  when  a 
band  of  iron  was  nailed  around  it.  Another  comparison  will  be 
more  apropos  than  that  between  man  and  the  hoi'se. 

The  fastest  animal  next  to  the  horse  (and  some  contend  that  he  is 
the  faster  of  the  two)  is  the  English  greyhound.  His  foot  is  very 
different  from  the  horse,  in  having  quite  a  spring  between  the  heel 
and  the  toes,  which  comes  from  the  knuckles  forming  an  arch.  The 
pad  is  pi-otected  with  a  sole  like  the  indurated  skin  of  the  human 
foot,  but  not  nearly  so  hard  as  the  layers  of  horn  of  the  sole  of  the 
horse.  This  pad  at  times  becomes  worn,  so  that  it  has  to  be  artifi- 
cially protected.  It  is  obvious  that  this  protection  will,  in  a  measure, 
confine  the  toes,  and  the  animals  wearing  them  have  nothing  like 
their  usual  speed. 

When  the  dog  is  at  rest,  the  toes  are  drawn  together,  and  the  foot 
covers  a  small  space ;  but  when  in  the  full  force  of  the  gallop,  cover- 
ing twelve  to  fifteen  feet  in  his  stride,  the  toes  are  spread  apart,  and 
the  imprint  is  nearly  double  that  of  the  foot  when  raised.  The  grey- 
hound is  lighter  in  proportion  to  his  size  than  the  horse,  and  conse- 
quently there  is  nothing  like  the  concussion  of  the  heavier  animal, 
even  without  a  rider.     A  weighted  collar  upon  the  neck  will  handi- 


22  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

cap  a  fleet  dog  to  the  level  of  a  slower,  and  a  few   ounces  in  this 
collar  has  a  great  effect. 

To  return  to  the  difference  between  shoes  and  plates  on  a  race- 
liorse,  and  the  effect  of  the  latter  in  increasing  the  speed :  it  is  mani- 
fest that  it  is  not  the  trifling  difference  in  weight  which  causes  it. 
It  is  generally  supposed  that  the  plate  induces  lower  knee-action,  and 
that  increases  the  speed.  Were  that  the  case,  those  horses  which 
have  the  least  knee-action  would  be  the  fastest,  which  does  not  follow ; 
but  the  thin  strip  of  iron  more  readily  springs  with  the  foot,  and 
Avith  the  diminished  thickness  permits  the  frog  and  sole  to  come  to 
the  ground  and  moderate  the  jar.  This  gives  something  of  the  free- 
dom of  the  spreading  foot  of  the  greyhound  ;  the  horse  lengthens  his 
stride,  and  "  gathering  "  more  rapidly,  the  action  is  better. 

But  there  is  a  drawback  to  the  plates,  and  that  is  the  greater  liabil- 
ity for  the  foot  to  become  sore  from  the  pressure  of  the  narrow  iron  on 
the  wall,  and  bringing  the  whole  force  of  the  concussion  on  the  pai't 
that  is  the  most  sensitive.  Trainers  and  jockeys  talk  about  the  hard 
track  "  burning  "  the  horse's  feet,  when  they  notice  the  shortening  of 
the  stride  and  the  endeavor  to  relieve  them  by  "  changing  feet," 
when  the  injury  comes  from  the  still  harder  iron.  Though  a  hard 
track  might  bruise  the  heels,  it  is  evident  the  broader  surface  would 
afford  some  relief  Tips  leave  the  natural  guards  intact,  without  the 
evils  which  follow  pressure  on  the  heels.  It  is  evident  that  the  pro- 
longation of  so  light  and  narrow  a  piece  of  iron  as  a  racing-plate  can- 
not afford  any  protection.  Some  of  them,  weigh  as  little  as  one 
ounce,  and  those  weighing  four  ounces  are  very  heavy.  This  thin 
band  of  metal  is  somewhat  analagous  to  a  foreign  substance  between 
the  heel  and  shoe  in  the  human  foot ;  and  we  all  are  aware  of  the 
inconvenience  a  very  small  thing  will  be  in  such  a  case. 

The  race-horse  strides  from  18  to  26  feet,  and  the  fastest  in  a 
"brush"  go  at  the  rate  of  a  mile  inside  of  one  huncbed  seconds. 
The  weight  of  horse  and  rider  will  be  over  one  thousand  pounds,  two- 
thirds  of  this  being  borne  by  the  fore  legs.  The  velocity  and  the 
weight  combined  make  the  jar  tremendous,  and  frequently  the  heel 
of  the  plate  is  torn  from  its  fastenings  and  injures  the  leg.  Several 
race-hoi'ses  have  been  ruined  in  this  manner — the  most  notable,  per- 


THE  OAKLAND  STREETS.  23 

haps,  the  great  Longfellow.  The  use  of  the  racing-tip  obviates  all 
danger  of  this  kind,  and  consequently  the  advantage,  in  this  particu- 
lar, is  worthy  of  consideration.  A  few  horses  have  been  able  to  mm 
faster  in  their  training-shoes  than  when  plated — ^doubtless  arising 
from  the  broader  surface  of  the  shoes  distributing  the  jar  over  a 
greater  M-idth,  and  those  hoi'ses  having  a  light  wall. 

Dan  Mace,  in  his  lettei's  in  the  New  York  Spirit  of  the  Times, 
ascribed  FuUerton  working  badly  on  one  occasion  to  the  heels  of  the 
shoe  having  sprung  so  as  to  give  a  wrong  bearing.  This  horse  has  a 
light  wall,  and,  as  it  is  known  that  white  feet  are  not  usually  as 
strong  as  those  of  a  darker  color,  a  trifling  displacement  of  the  shoe 
would  affect  him,  when  another  horse  with  a  stronger  foot  would  be 
able  to  bear  it  with  impunity.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  present 
further  arguments  on  the  advantages  of  leaving  the  quarters  com- 
pletely unfettered,  and  retaining  the  whole  capacity  of  the  heel  to 
obviate  the  bad  effects  of  concussion.  It  will  be  as  well  to  consider 
the  objections  to  tips  being  used  on  horses  which  are  required  to 
work  fast,  and,  perhaps,  there  may  be  something  so  fatal  to  their 
general  use  that  it  may  be  necessary  to  adopt  the  old  shoe,  or  a  re- 
modification  of  it.  Stonehenge's  objection,  that  the  frog  and  heel 
would  be  worn  so  thin  as  to  lame  the  animal,  does  not  hold  good  so 
far  as  I  have  experimented.  It  is  evident  that  a  macadamized,  gravel- 
covered  road  would  present  most  friction,  and  as  some  horses  slide 
their  feet  along  in  making  the  stride,  the  wear  would  be  very  severe. 
The  subject  I  have  tried  was  particularly  prone  to  this  manner  of 
progression,  and  an  ordinary  shoe  was  soon  worn  ou^t  on  the  Oakland 
streets,  which  are  entirely  paved  with  macadam,  and  some  of  them 
covered  with  sharp  beach  gravel.  I  tested  the  "  elastic  shoe "  on 
him,  a  cast-ii'on  shape,  with  a  groove  in  which  was  filled  a  composi- 
tion of  rubber  and  wool.  In  less  than  a  week  the  elastic  material 
was  entirely  worn  away,  and  the  greater  poi-tion  of  the  soft  iron  at 
the  toe.  The  animal  was  three  years  old  in  1875,  thoroughbred,  and 
had  a  good  deal  of  trotting  action,  being  able  to  trot  a  mile  in  four 
minutes,  showing  at  times  a  much  faster  gait  on  the  road.  He  pre- 
sented a  good  oppoi'tunity  to  experiment  with,  and  I  tried  several 
varieties  of  shoes,  preparing  his  feet  and  nailing  them  on  myself. 


24  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

I  began  witli  the  shoe  first  described,  viz :  two  plates  of  cast 
brass  or  co])per,  with  a  stratum  of  rubber  between.  In  the  Fall  of 
187.5  I  commenced  the  use  of  tips,  driving  him  frequently  on  the 
road.  The  first  vised  were  cast  something  of  the  form  shown  in  the  cut 
in  the  next  chapter,  but  without  the  depression  for  the  introduction 
of  the  rubber  between  the  sole  and  the  metal.  The  tip  extended 
back  a  short  distance  behind  the  point  of  the  frog,  and  the  foot  was 
prepared  by  cutting  the  horn  down  where  the  tip  came,  until  the 
ground  surface  of  that  and  the  horn  at  the  heel  was  on  the  same  level. 
It  being  slightly  wedge-shaped,  most  of  the  horn  was  cut  away  fi'om 
the  toe,  where  it  could  be  cut  down  more  safely  than  at  the  posterior 
portion  of  the  tip.  Shod  in  this  way  there  was  not  as  much  wear 
at  the  heel  as  the  natural  growth,  while  the  toe  of  the  tip  would 
soon  be  worn  to  a  feather-edge.  All  winter  he  was  thus  driven, 
doing  all  the  "running  around,"  to  town,  and  generally  on  Sundays 
long  drives  on  the  gravelled  roads.  This  was  varied  by  an  occasional 
brush  on  the  ti'ack  when  the  race-horses  in  training  needed  company, 
and  several  times  he  was  taken  across  the  bay  and  driven  over  the 
cobble-stones,  Belgian  pavement,  red-rock  roads  of  the  Park,  and 
the  Clifi"  House  road  to  the  Bay  District  Course.  As  a  further 
experiment,  I  nailed  tips  cut  from  a  slab  of  copper  three-sixteenths 
of  an  inch  thick,  and  covering  the  whole  of  the  foot  from  a  short 
distance  back  of  the  frog,  there  being  a  small,  triangular  space  for 
the  apex  of  the  frog  to  come  through.  He  could  not  trot  as  fast 
in  this  as  the  heavier  tip,  but  could  run  faster.  The  copper  sunk 
down  in  the  middle  nntil  it  touched  the  sole,  but  as  it  was  quite 
concave,  there  did  not  appear  to  be  any  ill  effects  following,  as  the 
main  pressvire  was  thrown  iipon  the  edges.  Like  the  others,  the 
wear  came  upon  the  front  portion,  and  it  remained  upon  the  feet 
until  that  part  and  the  horn  at  the  toe  were  worn  to  quite  an  acute 
angle.  Some  writers  who  have  treated  of  the  subject  of  shoeing, 
have  recommended  the  new  shoe  being  formed  in  this  manner,  claim- 
ing that  the  wear  was  due  to  the  horse  dragging  his  toe  along  the 
ground,  and  that  rounding  the  shoe  to  the  shape  of  the  one  that  had 
been  worn,  enabled  the  horse  to  travel  more  easily,  and  did  away 
with  the  tendency  to   stumble.       The  worn  tip  made  from  the  tough 


"  DWELLING  "    ACTION.  25 

material  proved  that  this  view  was  incorrect,  as  the  edge  was  turned 
lip  so  as  to  hip  partially  over  the  horn,  showing  that  it  was  the  turn- 
ing of  the  foot  from  the  heel  to  the  toe  which  did  it,  and  also  proved 
the  importance  of  having  an  edge  which  would  not  slip  as  the  foot 
left  the  <^round.  There  are  horses  which  dwell  in  their  action,  which 
will  require  the  beveling  of  the  shoe,  and  this  we  will  take  into  con- 
sideration hereafter. 


CHAPTER  III. 

Different  Forms  of  Tips — Effect  of  Weight  on 
THE  Feet — Miles'  Essay — Etc. 


The  cut  represents  two  tips,  No.  1  being  such  as  is  preferable  for 
the  race-horse,  and  some  trotters,  when  in  training;  2  and  3  the 
ground  and  foot  surface  of  one  for  trotting  colts  which  have  such  a 
gait  as  requires  this  shape.  The  first  representation  is  rather  too 
long  for  the  race-horse,  and  in  my  practice  I  have  found  it  better 
not  to  have  the  tips  come  further  back  than  the  point  of  the  frog, 
and  four  nails,  all  that  are  required  to  properly  fasten  it  to  the  foot. 
It  is  made  light  and  with  a  s wedged  rim  to  give  a  better  hold  of  the 
cround,  with  only  projection  enough  to  effect  this,  as  a  deeper  rim 
would  throw  too  much  weight  on  the  wall.  The  only  thing  required 
in  the  race-horse  is  to  protect  the  toe  from  wear,  and  the  lighter  the 


BEST  METHOD  OF  NAILING.  27 

tip,  when  sufficiently  heavy  to  stand  the  strain,  the  better  it  is.  For 
seventeen  years  I  have  followed  the  plan  of  nailing  from  the  inside 
of  the  wall,  and  in  Horse  Portraiture,  and  in  articles  written 
prior  to  the  publication  of  that  work,  haverecommended  that  system, 
and  given  my  reasons  for  the  pi-eference.  At  that  time  I  thought  it 
original  with  me,  but  have  since  found  that  it  was  the  French 
manner  of  nailino-,  and  for  centuries  back  the  Arabs  fastened  the 
shoes  on  their  horses  in  that  way.  The  form  of  the  nail  which  the 
Arabs  use  compels  the  nailing  through  the  walls,  as  the  shape  of  it 
i-enders  it  impossible  to  drive  it  so  close  to  the  edge  as  our  black- 
smiths do;  it  is  more  like  the  old-fashioned  clinch-nail,  which  the 
country  blacksmith  of  forty  years  ago  made  by  hand,  and  the  wall  is 
perforated  by  it  at  an  aciite  angle. 

Dr.  May  hew,  an  English  veterinarian,  has  show^n  the  advantages 
of  this  plan,  and  his  advice  was  written  about  the  same  time  I 
adopted  it,  but  of  which  I  was  ignorant  until  a  few  years  ago.  It 
does  not  require  long  argument  to  prove  the  advantages  of  this 
system  of  nailing.  The  wall  of  the  hoi-se's  foot  being  formed  of 
thin  layers  of  horn,  agglutinated  together,  a  wedge-shaped  piece  of 
iron,  which  the  horse-nail  is,  when  forced  with  the  "  gi-ain "  has  a 
tendency  to  split  them  apart ;  and  how  often  do  we  see  the  whole 
side  of  the  horse's  hoof  torn  off  and  clinging  to  the  shoe] 

Driven  from  the  inner  side  through  the  layers,  the  wall  is  per- 
forated and  the  clinch  forms  a  rivet,  which  makes  the  foot  actually 
stronger. 

The  liability  to  "prick"  the  foot  is  very  great  when  the  nail  is 
stai-ted  from  the  edge  and  has  to  be  driven  on  a  cui-\'e  until  it  "  gets 
a  high  hold,"  and  if  the  sensitive  tissues  are  not  wounded,  oftentimes 
it  comes  so  near  that  the  pressure  makes  the  animal  lame. 

A  lower  hold,  with  the  whole  strength  of  the  wall,  is  far  more  ef- 
fective, and  since  following  the  practice  my  horses  have  retained  their 
shoes  much  better.  With  the  tip  and  four  nails  I  have  never  had  one 
come  off  xmtil  it  was  worn  entirely  thi^ough.  While  figure  1  repre- 
sents too  long  a  ti])  for  the  race-horse,  it  is  the  right  length  for  a  trot- 
ter which  requires  a  toe-weight,  as  in  that  case  the  space  between  the 
second  and  third  nail  is  required  to  hold  the  strap  which  secures  the 


28  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

weigbt  behind.  A  slot  is  filed  in  the  metal,  through  which  the  strap 
is  di'awn,  and  the  hook  of  the  "  Eureka "  toe- weight,  at  thfe  toe, 
makes  a  firm  junction.  This  will  be  fully  considered  when  I  write 
of  the  uses  and  eff"ects  of  these  lately-invented  trotting  appendages. 
Figures  2  and  3  represent  a  peculiar  tip,  and  while  one  of  the  shape 
of  figure  1  with  the  toe- weight  attachment  will  be  found,  in  a  great 
majority  of  instances,  all  that  is  required  for  trotting  colts  and  older 
horses,  many  young  animals  will  be  much  benefited  by  wearing  such 
as  these  cuts  represent.  Very  frequently  colts  of  great  promise  to 
make  fast  trotters  have  so  little  knee-action  that  they  point  and  dwell 
in  their  stride,  and  after  months,  or  perhaps  years,  of  careful  educa- 
tion, still  retain  so  much  of  this  faulty  action  as  to  greatly  interfere 
with  an  increase  of  speed.  Rattles,  strings  of  small  bells,  weights, 
and  all  the  appliances,  fail  to  remedy  the  defect,  and  after  patient  en- 
deavor the  trainer  is  forced  to  give  them  up.  Road-driving  some- 
times overcomes  the  defect,  but  in  a  majority  of  instances  the  liabit 
becomes  fixed,  and  if  the  animal  is  strongly  urged  is  very  liable  to 
get  to  hitching,  single-footing  or  shuffling  along  in  the  attempt  to  go 
faster  than  his  gait  will  permit.  Horses  of  this  kind  of  action  are 
very  liable  to  cut  themselves  on  the  coronet,  or  bring  the  hind  foot 
in  contact  with  the  shoe  on  the  fore  foot.  This  comes  from  the  dwell- 
ing habit,  the  front  foot  not  being  picked  up  fast  enough,  the  hind 
foot  catching  it  before  it  is  raised. 

Figure  2  represents  the  ground  surface  of  the  tip,  with  the  beveled 
toe,  and  extra  posterior  projection  to  give  weight.  The  beveled  toe  is 
to  quicken  the  stroke,  the  weight  to  induce  higher  action.  Several 
years  ago,  when  living  in  Iowa,  on  the  banks  of  the  Mississippi  rivei-, 
Mr.  Robert  Bonner  sent  me  a  pattern  of  the  "rolling-motion  shoe," 
with  calkinQ;s  so  that  it  could  be  used  on  the  ice.  There  were  four 
calks  on  the  shoe,  those  in  front  being  set  back  fully  as  far  as  the 
transverse  bar  shown  in  the  cut.  It  astonished  me  with  the  effect  it 
had  in  quickening  the  motion  of*  the  front  feet.  On  the  hard,  icy 
surface  this  effect  would  be  more  marked  than  on  the  softer  track  or 
road.  With  an  ordinary  shoe,  horses  will  "  pick  up  quicker  "  on  the 
ice,  and  with  this  the  effect  was  to  subject  the  driver  to  a  perfect 
shower  of  small  pieces  of  ice,  thrown  with  a  velocity  which  made  the 


THE  ROLLING-MOTION  SHOE.  29 

seat  of  the  skeleton  sleigh  an  "  anxious-seat  "  for  the  reinsman.  A 
sulky  had  to  be  substituted,  in  order  to  obtain  a  higher  seat,  to  avoid 
the  peppering,  and  a  stream  of  glittering  particles  would  follow  the 
wheels.  The  cause  of  this  is  apparent.  With  the  calkin  on  the  toe, 
it  lengthened  the  point  over  which  the  foot  had  to  roll,  and  jjlacing 
the  fulcrum  farther  back,  gained  a  shorter  and  conseqiiently  a  faster 
stroke.  In  that  part  of  Iowa  wex"e  many  Geimans,  and  one  of  them 
had  acqui]-ed  a  Avide  reputation  for  the  wooden  shoes  he  fabricated. 
They  were  much  easier  to  walk  in  than  those  made  after  the  usual 
pattern,  and  the  whole  secret  was  his  placing  a  bar  across  the  bottom 
of  the  shoe,  below  the  ball  of  the  foot.  It  was  analogous  to  the  set- 
back calkins  of  the  rolling-motion  shoe.  The  rigid  material  did  not 
permit  the  bending  of  the  foot  in  the  manner  the  leather  sole  does, 
and  in  lieu  of  placing  the  fulcrum  at  the  extreme  point,  it  was  back 
some  three  inches,  requiring  much  less  foi'ce  to  raise  the  heel.  The 
Chinese  shoe  is  a  further  exemplification  of  the  principle  that  an  un- 
yielding sole  is  made  easier  for  the  wearer  to  travel  upon  wlien  the 
toe  is  beveled  like  the  tip. 

I  found  that  a  tip  made  after  the  plan  shown  in  the  cut,  but  rest- 
ing on  the  sole,  made  the  horee  cripple  after  it  had  been  worn  for  a 
time  :  and  one  in  which  the  metal  was  cut  away  had  the  drawback 
of  permitting  the  wet  clay  to  become  impacted  between  it  and  the 
sole,  so  as  to  produce  the  same  difficulty.  Figure  3  represents  the 
foot  surface,  the  outer  rim  half  an  inch  wide,  and  raised  above  the 
portion  which  covers  the  sole  an  eighth  of  an  inch.  In  this  depres- 
sion is  fitted  a  piece  of  the  best  India-rubber,  a  little  thicker  than 
the  depression,  and  when  the  tip  is  nailed  on  it  keeps  its  place  per- 
fectly, preventing  the  gathering  of.  dirt  "  between  the  sole  and  the 
metal,"  and  also  giving  an  elastic  material  which  does  not  injure  the 
sole  with  an  injurious  pressure.  The  toe  of  the  gi-ound  sui-face, 
being  beveled,  has  another  advantage,  as  it  is  not  so  likely  to  wound 
the  coronet,  or  the  lower  pai-t  of  tiie  ankle  ;  neither  is  it  so  apt  to 
strike  the  horn  of  the  hind  foot.  Closely  watch  tlie  action  of  the 
fast  trotter — the  best  place  to  see,  when  seated  in  a  skeleton  wagon — 
and  you  will  observe  that  while  the  fore  foot  is  raised  from  the 
ground,  the  hind  foot  on  the  same  side  is  thrust  under  it,  some  horses 


30  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

coin"'  outside  and  some  inside  of  the  center  of  the  front  foot.     When 
the  knee  is  fully  bent,  the  fore  foot  is  raised  higher,  and  the  hind  foot 
strikes  the  ground  much  in  advance,  and  at  nearly  the  same  time  as 
the  opposite  fore  foot  touches  the  earth — so  near  that  it  is  difficult  for 
the  eye  or  ear  to  distinguish  any  difference.      It  is  about  the  middle 
of  the  stride  when  the  feet  come  together,  and  further  along  the  foot 
is  raised  until,  in  some  horses,    the   shin  is  struck,  not  unfrequently 
as  high  up  as  the  hock.    When  the  shin  is  struck,  it  is  generally  done 
with  the  lower,  outside  edge  of  the  shoe,  and  there  is  less  danger  of 
this  injury  when  tips  are   worn.     Any  intelligent,    close-observing 
trainer  of  trotters  will  have  noticed  how  colts  endeavor  to  avoid  the 
injury.     Some  will  twist   themselves  sideways   and  trot  like  a  dog, 
one  hind  foot  going  inside  of  the  front  ones,  the  other  to  the  outside; 
others  make  a  soi-t  of  a  jump  behind,  both  being  detrimental  to  speed. 
Boots  are  applied,  and  there  is  little  doubt  that  the  improvement 
in  the  trotters  of  the  present  day  is  greatly  owing  to  the  more  intel- 
ligent use  of  these  adjuncts.     Still,  it  is  manifest  that  boots  on  the 
hoofs  of  the  hind  feet,  extending  above  the  coronet,  on  the  pasterns, 
ankles  and  shins  must,  more  or  less,  hamper  the  animal  wearing  them, 
and  if  the  difficulty  can  be  obviated  by  a  change  of  shoeing,  it  will 
be  a  superior  method  of  overcoming  it.     But  if  this  change  in   the 
shoeing  gives  a  wrong  bearing,  an  imnatin-al  set  of  the  feet  or  limbs, 
the  remedy  would  eventually  be  worse  than  the  disease.     The  use  of 
tips  present  a  better  opportvmity  to  modulate  the  action  than  is  pos- 
sible to   accomplish   with  shoes  without  endangering  the   feet   and 
limbs.       An  illustration,  and    one    which    has   struck  me  with  the 
gi'eatest  force,  is  the  change  in  the  action  of  the  colt  when  first  shod. 
He  has  been  broken  and  driven  some,  before  anything  is  placed  upon 
his  feet,  and  his  trainer  will  tell  you  that   there  will   be  a  favorable 
change  whenever  he  has  the  iron  fastened  to  his  hoofs.     In  ninety- 
nine  cases  in  a  hundred,  the  result  will  be  as  predicted,  and  the 
shoes,  weighing  in  the  neighborhood  of  a  pound  each,  will  increase 
his  speed  by  several  seconds.     I  haye  found  a  tip  of  not  more  than 
six  ounces  to  have  the  same  effect.     Again,  a  tendency  to  pace  is 
overcome  by  a  heavier  shoe  or  the  resort  to  something  else  which  has 
been  found  to  have  an  analagous  effect. 


CrfANGING  THE  PACE  INTO  THE  TROT.  31 

One  of  tlie  most  successful  tniiuevs  I  ever  knew  in  convei'tinor  the 
pacer  to  a  fast  trotter,  informed  me  that  to  iiin  the  horse  with  feet 
weighted,  until  he  became  too  tired  eithei-  to  run  or  pace,  was  the 
most  effectual  method  he  had  ever  found  to  overcome  the  propensity 
fyr  the  lateral  manner  of  progi-ession.  This  proves  that  a  heavy  shoe 
or  heavy  toe-weight  is  inimical  to  speed,  either  running  or  pacing, 
but  is  adapted  to  the  trotting  gait,  and  the  horse,  finding  he  can  get 
along  easier  when  thus  encumbered,  naturally  tends  to  relieve  liimself 
by  adopting  the  action  suitable  to  the  changed  condition,  and  that 
which  tired  beyond  endurance  in  the  other  paces  can  be  siistained  at 
the   trot. 

This  is  also  further  proven  by  the  other  methods  which  trainers 
employ  to  change  the  pace  into  the  trot ;  the  old  plan  was  to  strew 
the  road  with  rails,  and  ride  the  animal  over  it;  another,  to  practice 
the  horse  through  loose  sand  or  deep  snow  ;  and  lately,  in  Texas,  a 
very  fast  trotter  was  converted  by  diiving  him  on  the  beach  when 
the  water  reached  his  knees.  The  latter  method  is  evidently  a  very 
effectual  one  to  cavise  the  horse  to  bend  his  knees,  and  the  theory  of 
the  effect  of  weight  on  the  action  and  the  practice  coincide.  It  is 
manifest  that  the  knees  must  be  bent  more  to  enable  the  horse  to  get 
through  the  water  easily,  for  if  the  leg  was  pvished  along,  the  resist- 
ance of  the  fluid  would  be  gi-eat;  consequently,  the  horse  soon  learns  to 
pick  his  foot  up  as  neai-ly  perpendicular  as  he  can,  and  thrust  it  well 
forward.  The  most  approved  theory  is  that  the  weight  influences 
the  action  the  most  strongly  whei-e  the  heaviest  weight  is  placed,  and 
with  shoes  made  much  heavier  on  the  inner  quarter,  the  striking  the 
knee  will  be  more  likely  to  follow,  and  a  horse  which  hits  his  knee 
with  an  equal  shoe,  will  avoid  it  when  the  outside  is  made  the  heaviest. 
It  will  necessarily  follow  the  adoption  of  this  hypothesis  that  weight 
on  the  toe  will  have  a  greater  influence  on  the  action  than  the  same 
amount  distributed  over  the  whole  foot,  and  though  the  present  form 
of  the  weight  was  invented  to  obviate  the  bruising  of  the  heels,  from 
the  older-fashioned  kind,  it.  was  based  on  the  scientific  principle  of 
the  corelation  of  forces.  Thus,  a  bullet  with  one  hemisphere  cast  of 
a  denser  material  than  the  othei-,  will  fly  in  a  curve,  the  shorter 
radius  being  on  the  light  side.      The  lighter  the  side  the  greater  will 


23  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

be  the  effect,  and  if  the  power  coukl  be  applied  so  as  to  overcome  the 
attraction  of  gravitation,  such  a  ball  would  describe  a  horizontal 
cii-cle. 

As  has  ah-eady  been  shown,  while  weights  on  the  feet  increase  the 
speed,  and  establish  the  propensity  to  trot  in  preference  to  run  or 
pace,  there  is  danger  to  the  legs  attending  the  use  of  it,  and  many 
promising  horses  have  been  irrepai-ably  injui'ed.  The  better  acquaint- 
ance with  the  weights  has  lessened  the  danger  ;  when  first  invented 
it  was  held  necessary  to  have  a  heavy  shoe,  to  which  they  were  added, 
and  now  it  is  found  that  a  lighter  shoe  does  away  with  the  necessity 
of  so  much  weight,  and  the  same  result  follows.  More  than  twenty 
years  ago  I  had  a  pair  of  weight-boots,  which  were  made  in  Boston. 
They  were  simply  a  quartei--boot,  filled  with  lead  ;  they  were  actually 
a  detriment,  from  the  weight  being  mostly  on  the  wrong  portion  of 
the  foot,  and  after  a  horse  wore  them  a  few  times  he  would  be  very 
sore  from  the  pounding  on  his  quai'ters.  This  should  have  been  fore- 
seen by  any  one  who  gave  the  subject  much  thought,  as  it  increased 
the  concussion,  and,  between  the  weight  and  the  heavy,  thick-heeled 
shoe,  the  blow  came  from  both  above  and  below. 

That  the  present  toe-weight  does  effect  the  purpose,  while  the 
former  was  ineffectual,  establishes  that  the  location  is  all-important ; 
and,  furthermore,  that  it  does  not  depend  so  much  on  the  amount  of 
the  weight  as  the  balance  being  properly  sustained.  If  a  twelve- 
ounce  shoe  and  an  eight-ounce  toe-weight  has  the  same  effect  as  a 
two-pound  shoe  and  a  pound-and-a-half  weight,  it  is  obvious  that  a 
tip  which  only  weighs  six  ounces  will  give  the  same  equilibrium  to  a 
four-ounce  weight.  The  Avhole  weight  of  the  tip  comes  in  the  right 
place,  and  adds  to  in  place  of  lessening  the  advantages. 

The  trouble  was  to  fasten  a  toe-weight  to  a  tip,  and  until  I  became 
acquainted  with  the  "  Eureka  "  fastening  I  gave  the  whole  of  my 
study  to  combine  the  weight  in  the  tip  by  making  it  still  heavier 
than  the  cut  shows.  There  were  objections,  which  I  will  explain 
hereafter.  Before  touching  on  this  I  will  give  some  further  illustra- 
tions of  the  benefits  arising  from  leaving  the  posterior  portion  of  the 
foot  in  its  natural  state. 

Mr.  Miles,  in  his  "  Treatise  on  Horse-shoeing,"  writes  : 


OPEN-HEELED  SHOES. 


33 


"I  know  that  many  smiths  are  fond  of  what  are  called  '  open-heeled 
shoes,'  which  means  shoes  with  straight  heels,  wide  apart,  and  pro- 
jecting beyond  the  hoof,  both  behind  and  at  the  sides,  and  the  only 
reason  I  have  ever  heard  in  favor  of  such  shoes  is  a  very  bad  one, 
^'iz. :  that  the  horse  requires  more  support  at  the  heels  than  he  gets 
from  the  hoof.  But  you  may  depend  upon  it  that  nature  has  made 
no  mistake  about  it ;  and  if  the  horse  ideally  wanteJ  more  support 
than  he  gets  from  the  heels  of  the  hoof,  he  would  have  had  it.  But 
I  think  I  shall  prove  to  you  that  this  kind  of  a  shoe,  instead  of 
being  a  benefit  to  the  horse,  is  a  positive  evil  to  him  ;  it  interferes 
with  his  action,  and  exposes  his  sole  and  frog  to  serious  injuxy  from 
stones  in  the  road,  and  the  projecting  portions  of  the  shoe  become 
ledges  for  stiff  gi-ound  to  cling  to  and  pull  the  shoe  off.  More  shoes 
are  lost  tlu-ough  this  mischievous  projecting  at  the  heels  than  from 
all  other  causes  put  together. 

"  Let  us  see  how  it  is  that  these  projecting  heels  interfere  with  the 
horse's  action.  It  is  not  necessary  for  this  purpose  to  trouble  you 
v,4th  the  anatomy  of  the  foot,  but  merely  to  state  that  all  its  parts 
are  joined  to  each  other  in  such  a  manner  as  to  form  one  great 
spring,  and  that  the  foot  is  joined  to  the  leg  by  the  pastern  and 
coronet  bones,  in  a  direction  slanting  forw-ard,  which  brings  the  foot 
a  little  in  advance  of  the  leg,  and  places  the  heels  in  front  of  a  line 
dropped  fi'om  the  centi-e  of  the  fetlock  joint  to  the  ground  : 


34  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

"Figure  1.  The  shank  or  cannon  bone.  2.  The  pastern  bone.  3. 
The  coronet  bone.  4.  The  sessamoid  bone.  A.  The  point  wliei-e 
the  weight  of  the  horse  would  fall  upon  the  upjDer  end  of  the  pastern 
bone.  B.  The  point  where  a  line  dropped  from  A  would  meet  the 
ground.  C.  The  heel  of  the  hoof.  Now,  it  is  clear  that  the  weight 
of  the  horse  will  fall  upon  the  upper  end  of  this  slanting  pastern 
bone  at  every  step  ;  and  the  bone,  having  a  joint  at  each  end  of  it, 
will  sink  to  the  weight  thus  thrown  upon  it,  and  break  the  shock 
both  to  the  leg  and  foot ;  but  if  the  heels  of  the  shoe  are  longer  than 
the  heels  of  the  hoof,  the  projecting  pieces  of  iron  will  meet  the 
ground  further  back  than  the  natural  heels  would  have  done,  and 
will  check  the  sinking 'of  the  pastern  bone,  just  as  an  upright  pastern 
does,  by  bringing  tlie  heels  too  much  under  the  center  of  the  weight, 
which  causes  the  horse  to  stop  short  and  go  stumpy.  If  you  wish 
to  avoid  these  evils  and  keep  the  hoi'se's  shoes  on  his  feet,  you  must 
bring  in  the  heels,  and  let  the  shoe  strictly  follow  the  form  of  the 
foot,  whatever  that  form  may  be." 

This  argument  of  Mr.  Miles  is  a  foi'cible  illustration  of  the  bad 
effect  of  doing  away  with  the  natural  bearing  of  the  horse's  foot, 
and,  -strongly  as  it  favors  the  accurate  fitting  of  the  shoe  to  the  foot, 
is  a  still  better  exemplification  of  the  laecessity  for  leaving  that  part 
of  the  fore  foot  as  nature  made  it,  unhampered  and  free  to  perform  its 
natural  functions.  The  illustration  shows  the  position  of  the  foot 
and  leg  when  the  animal  is  standing  ;  when  in  motion,  and  particularly 
when  going  fast,  thei^e  Ls  far  more  necessity  to  guard  against  the 
evils  of  a  wi'ong  bearing.  Then  the  foot  is  thrown  forwai-d  and 
strikes  the  ground  at  the  farthest  point  it  will  reach.  The  formation 
of  the  fore  limbs  from  the  scapula  down  is  such  as  to  break  the  jar 
as  much  as  possible.  Unlike  the  hind  legs,  they  are  not  rigidly 
attached  i;p  the  bony  framewoi-k  of  the  trvnik,  but  are  bound  to  it 
with  elastic  bands  of  muscles. 

The  angle  which  the  humerus  and  scapula  form  is  the  same  as 
the  elliptic  steel  spring  under  a  caniage ;  from  the  elbow  to  the 
ankle  the  bones  are  curved,  and  the  sloping  pastern,  bending  down 
when  the  weight  is  thrown  upon  it,  complete  the  protection  above 
the  foot.     Were  the  foot  a  solid,  unyielding  body,  all  the  protection 


AN  ADMIRABLE  CONTRIVANCE.  35 

alliuled  to  would  be  rendered  useless.  It  would  then  be  like  strikinir 
with  a  hammer  which  had  a  spriiigy  handle,  the  blow  being  more 
acute,  more  stinging  from  the  spring.  But  the  most  admirable  con- 
trivance of  all  to  obviate  the  ill  effects  of  the  jar,  arising  from  the 
rapid  concussion,  is  in  the  foot  in  its  natural  state.  The  opening  paper 
of  this  essay  illustrated  this,  and  the  first  cut  explains  how  the  spring 
of  the  foot  aids  the  elasticity  of  the  frog  in  counteracting  the  diffi- 
culty. At  the  risk  of  repetition  it  will  be  well  to  give  this  matter 
the  fullest  consitleration,  as,  in  my  opinion,  this  is  the  most  import- 
ant matter  to  thoroughly  study.  All  of  the  best  veterinarians,  and 
a  great  majority  of  the  wi'iters  on  the  pathology  of  the  horse's  foot, 
have  recognized  the  impoi*tance  of  retaining  iSiis  safeguard,  and  have 
recommended  various  plans  of  shoeing  to  obviate  the  difficulty  of  a 
rigid  band  when  nature  intended  there  should  be  the  fullest  motion. 
Ml".  Miles,  and  many  others,  advise  few  nails  being  used,  and 
those,  as  much  as  j)ossible,  driven  near  the  toe;  others,  a  shoe  with  a 
joint  at  the  toe,  and  another  patented  a  shoe  Avhicli  was  held  in  its 
place  by  screws  which  clasped  it  to  the  outside  of  the  wall. 

All  of  these  have  been  guided  by  the  belief  that  the  post  n-ior  por- 
tion of  the  foot  must  be  protected  by  an  iron  rim,  and  though  the 
quotation  from  J.  H.  "Walsh,  heretofore  given,  proves  that  he  had  a 
faint  idea  that  this  protection  might  be  dispensed  with,  he  had  not 
faith  enough  in  it  to  give  it  a  trial  himself,  though  he  signified  his 
wish  to  see  it  brought  more  fully  into  use.  By  i-eturniug  to  the  mat- 
ter quoted  from  "  Stonehenge,"  it  will  be  seen  that  in  some  instances 
he  knew  that  shoeing  with  tips  was  successful,  while  he  does  not  men- 
tion one  where  there  was  a  failure.  Miles  is  afraid  of  the  horse  in- 
jui-ing  the  sole  and  frog  with  a  narrow  shoe,  from  the  facility  with 
which  small  stones  could  be  introduced  and  bruise  the  exposed  parts. 
Mr.  Miles  would  have  seen  ten  times  the  danger  in  a  tip,  but  in  his 
instructions  to  the  smith  he  dii-ects  the  paring  away  of  the  sole  and 
the  cutting  away  the  bars  until  they  are  on  a  level  with  the  excised 
sole.  Left  with  the  pi-otection  which  nature  has  given  them,  there 
would  be  little  danger  of  the  kind,  and  though  a  sharp-pointed  flint 
or  stone  might  do  injury,  a  still  sharper  one  would  injure,  no  matter 
how  wide  the  web  of  the  shoe  was  made. 


CHAPTER  IV. 

Cure  op  a  Sprung  Tendon — Results  of  Experiments — Etc. 


The  horses  which  have  most  of  their  work  on  the  tracks,  wearing  the 
tips,  woukl  not  prove  the  fitness  of  them  for  road  use,  and  in  order  to 
test  them  on  as  unfavorable  ground,  and  imder  as  untoward  circum- 
stances, I  tried  them  on  three  three-year-old  trotting  colts,  and  the  same 
thoroughbred  spoken  of  previously.  The  latter  Avas  the  most  effectual 
subject  for  experiment,  as  he  was  driven  long  trips,  and  his  action 
naturally  was  so  low  and  sliding  that  he  soon  wore  an  ordiuaiy  shoe 
completely  out.  In  coming  from  Chicago  the  horses  were  only  ttiken 
off  at  Omaha,  and  never  left  the  car  until  they  arrived  at  Oakland, 
those  who  had  them  in  charge  not  following  my  instructions  to  make 
the  stops  between.  There  were  eleven  horses  in  the  car,  and  the  long 
journey,  and  being  continually  on  his  feet,  caused  this  colt  to  go  over 
on  his  knees.  He  was  a  sickly  colt,  and  the  summer  before,  the  large 
green-head  fly,  which  is  such  a  pest  in  the  neighborhood  of  Chicago, 
very  nearly  killed  him.  Though  two  years  old  at  the  time  I  brought 
liim  to  California,  he  had  the  appearance  of  a  yearling,  and  this 
physical  weakness  doubtless  was  the  cause  of  the  trouble,  as  the 
other  horses  showed  little  of  the  ill-effects  of  the  long  journey. 
While  he  wore  shoes  this  difliculty  appeared  to  be  increased,  and  he 
had  the  appearance  of  some  old  stage-horse  which  had  been  sent 
along  for  years  over  the  hard  roads.  Shortly  after  the  use  of  tips  on 
his  fore  feet  his  knees  began  to  straighten,  and  now  they  ax-e  only  a 
trifle  out  of  the  perpendicular.  During  the  summer  of  1876  I  sent 
him  to  Sacramento,  where  another  of  my  horses  was  in  ti:aining,  and 


A  SURPRISING  EFFECT.  37 

the  man  who  had  them  in  charge,  like  a  majority  of  others,  was  ob- 
stinate in  sticking  to  the  old  system^.  It  was  not  long  until  he 
"  sprang  "  one  of  the  tendons  between  the  ankle  and  foot,  and  he 
had  to  be  thrown  out  of  training.  The  shoe  had  evidently  been  piit 
on  without  proper  care  having  been  taken  in  giving  a  true  bearing, 
the  greater  pressure  being  on  the  inside  quarter  and  heel,  and  the 
horn,  on  that  side,  was  forced  up  until  there  was  quite  an  elevation 
at  the  coronet.  "When  I  got  him  home  the  tendon  was  considerably 
enlarged,  but  the  inflammation  had  subsided.  I  treated  the  enlarge- 
ment with  the  biniodide  of  mercury  preparation,  and  one  application 
reduced  the  enlargement  so  that  it  could  not  be  detected  that  there 
had  been  an  injury.  I  poulticed  the  coronet  with  boiled  tia-nips, 
and,  until  I  commenced  to  drive  him  again,  allowed  him  to  run  bare" 
foot  in  a  small  enclosure.  The  foot,  below  the  injury,  showed  the 
effects  of  the  wrong  set  of  the  shoe,  and,  the  result  of  the  inflamma- 
tory action,  the  frog  was  shrunken  and  hard.  Before  turning  him 
out  I  pared  the  foot  down  at  tlie  toe,  and  shortened  the  wall  at  the 
heel  i;ntil  the  frog  and  bars  touched  the  ground  fii'st. 

A  few  weeks  of  this  treatment  had  a  siirprising  efiect.  The  hard 
elevation  at  the  coronet  became  soft,  and  ere  long  it  returned  to  its 
normal  condition ;  the  frog  resumed  its  elasticity,  and  there  was  a 
pei-ce]»tible  widening  of  the  heel  above.  I  shod  him  with  a  tip  which 
would  weish  six  ounces,  and  fixed  so  as  to  attach  the  Eureka  toe- 
weight,  my  object  being  to  give  a  further  test  of  track  and  road  work 
on  a  trot,  before  he  was  put  in  training  to  run  again.  Like  a  majority 
of  horses,  he  wore  the  hind  shoes  much  faster  than  those  in  front,  the 
outside  of  both  being  most  worn.  The  usual  shoe  was  put  on  his 
hind  feet,  with  slots  to  fasten  a  toe-boot  on.  His  woi'k  was  varied, 
pai-tly  on  the  ti-ack,  at  which  time  he  was  hitched  to  a  sulky,  and 
when  on  the  road  a  wagon  with  two  persons  in  it  was  the  vehicle 
used.  The  streets  of  Oakland  are  noted  for  the  rapid  attrition  of  the 
iron,  but  even  daily  driving  of  this  horse  on  them  did  not  wear  away 
the  horn  as  fast  as  it  was  produced.  This  result  on  the  fore  feet  did 
not  lead  me  to  the  belief  that  tips  would  answer  on  the  hind,  there 
beinjj  so  much  difference  in  the  action.  The  front  feet  strike  the 
groimd  nearly  perpendicular  to  the  plane  of  the  foot,  wliile  the  hind 


.H 


38  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

feet  are  slid  along,  especially  when  horses  go  "  close  to  the  ground." 
But,  determined  to  make  tlie.test  as  thorougli  as  possible,  when  the 
hind  shoes  were  worn  entirely  through,  I  substituted  tips,  expecting 
that  they  would  not  do.  These  were  set  on  the  13th  of  January, 
and  the  4th  of  February  they  were  worn  entirely  througli,  without 
the  heels  being  affected.  They  wei-e  wider,  and  not  so  thick  as  the 
tips  in  front,  and  the  nails  were  left  in  the  horn  just  as  they  were 
driven,  minus  the  heads.  At  the  date  of  writing  this  it  has  just 
been  a  month  since  the  heels  of  the  hind  feet  were  exposed,  and  there 
has  not  been  tlie  slightest  soreness,  though  scarcely  a  day  has  elajised 
that  he  has  not  been  used  on  the  road. 

Two  of  the  trotting  colts — fillies — had  been  shod  the  Fall  previous 
with  ordinary  shoes ;  the  other  never  wore  anything  but  tips  while  I 
had  him.  The  fillies  were  jogged  a  short  time  barefooted,  and  when 
the  tips  were  put  on  they  were  prepared  so  as  to  fasten  the  Eureka 
toe-weights  on  them.  Both  improved  very  rapidly  before  the 
weights  were  applied,  and  with  a  six-ounce  weight  there  was  an 
increase  of  speed.  One  of  them  was  by  a  son  of  Mambrino  Chief, 
out  of  a  Blackbird  mare  ;  the  other  by  a  Blackbird  horse,  her  dam  a 
thoroughbred  mare.  The  former  was  a  rapid,  short-gaited  filly ; 
the  other  the  reverse,  going  with  her  head  low  and  a  long,  sweeping 
stride.  The  Mambrino  I  tried  with  a  nine-ounce  weight  on  each 
fore  foot,  and  she  trotted  three  quarters  of  a  mile  in  2:04 — a  rate  of 
2:45  to  the  mile.  The  year  before  she  lamed  herself  in  the  hind  leg 
in  the  stall,  and  at  times  she  would  show  a  little  of  the  same  trouble, 
and  after  this  fast  drive  she  favored  her  leg  so  much  that  I  threw 
her  up,  and  she  was  turned  out  to  run  through  the  Winter.  The 
other  filly  also  improved  rapidly,  but  never  showed  such  speed,  being 
able  to  trot  the  mile  in  about  2:50.  Both  of  these  wei-e  shod  with  the 
ordinary  shoe  behind.  The  third  one  was  a  colt  by  the  same  Black- 
bird horse  that  got  the  filly,  his  dam  a  grand-daughter  of  Rysdyk's 
Hambletonian.  He  came  from  Chicago  the  Fall  before  with  a  coat 
like  the  winter  raiment  of  a  buflalo,  and  was  a  little  "  chunk  of  a 
colt "  which  evidently  had  not  been  favored  with  much  to  eat  save 
the  sour  prairie  grass  which  is  the  main  feed  in  these  pastui'es.  He 
was    full   of  worms  and   sickly   during  the  Spring,    but  grew  fast, 


HOCK-HOCKING.  39 

thougli  it  appeared  impossible  to  get  any  flesh  on  him.  Like  his 
half-sister,  he  was  a  long  strider,  and  his  improvement  was  also  rapid. 
At  times  there  was  an  inclination  to  single-foot,  and  at  fii'st  he  had  a 
dwelling  motion  in  his  stride.  The  application  of  the  six-ounce  toe" 
weight  would  correct  the  first,  and  a  tip  beveled  at  the  toe  as  shown 
in  the  cut  remedied  the  second.  Being  so  poor,  though  he  ate  2)lenty 
of  srain,  I  resti-icted  his  fast  work  to  half  miles,  and  in  a  few  weeks 
handling  he  dropped  from  a  "three  and  a  half  gait"  to  half  a  mile  in 
1:21.  I  found  it  much  easier  to  control  his  gait  with  the  tips  than 
I  ever  had  with  shoes  under  the  same  circumstances.  In  all  of  these 
colts'  feet  the  frog  was  full  and  elastic,  and  the  hoofs  retained  their 
proper  shape.  This  colt  won  a  three-year-old  stake  under  many 
adverse  circumstances. 

The  case  of  Hock-Hocking  presents  the  value  of  tips  in  a  very 
clear  light,  and  though  he  received  irrepai-able  injuries  before  wearing 
them,  the  history  will  show  that  he  could  be  trained  and  run  with 
them  when,  with  ordinaiy  shoes,  he  soon  became  lame.  When  I  first 
got  him — the  Spring  he  was  four  years  old — his  feet  were  out  oi 
shape  from  the  irregular  gi-owth  of  horn,  and  owing  to  his  antipathy 
to  have  his  feet  handled  the  heels  were  too  high  and  the  quarters 
somewhat  contracted.  Then  it  was  a  difficult  job  to  shoe  him,  and 
even  with  a  twitch  on  his  nose  he  gave  the  blacksmith  a  good  deal  of 
trouble.  His  work  was  on  a  hard  track,  much  harder  than  it 
appeared,  and  he  split  his  foot  from  the  coronet  to  the  ground.  It  is 
needless  to  recapitulate  the  races  he  ran.  He  was  continually  shat- 
tering his  hoofs,  and,  notwithstanding  the  support  of  copper  plates 
screwed  to  the  wall,  they  would  fractui-e  with  almost  every  gallop. 
He  started  in  a  race  of  two  mile  heats  with  Waterford  and  Wood- 
bury, was  close  up  in  the  first  heat  in  3:36|  literally  on  three  legs 
In  the  second  he  split  his  other  fore  foot,  and  started  the  small  meta. 
carpal  bone  from  the  larger. 

The  Spring  of  1875  Mi\  Dunbar  operated  on  him,  and  for  months, 
following  instructions,  we  soaked  his  feet  three  times  a  day  in  hot 
water,  walking  him  on  the  beach  when  the  tide  was  in,  and  taking 
every  pains  to  grow  his  feet  anew.  I  put  him  in  training  in  the 
Fall,  with  shoes  of  the  usual  weight  used  in  training  race-horses,  but 


40   •  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

after  woi'king  a  short  time  he  went  hiiiie.  I  gave  up  all  thought  of 
i-unning  him  in  the  four-mile  race,  but  when  it  was.  postponed  from 
Christmas  and  New  Year's  until  the  22d  of  February,  and  then  hav- 
ing adopted  the  tips,  I  concluded  to  try  them  on  him.  His  ankle 
was  very  much  enlarged  from  the  injury  to  the  splent  bone,  the 
lower  point  of  which  could  be  felt  between  the  middle  and  back  ten- 
don. In  this  training  his  lameness  never  appeai-ed,  and  though 
worked  very  hard,  he  started  in  the  race  in  fine  condition.  I  am 
not  alone  in  the  opinion  that  if  he  had  been  faii-ly  dealt  with  he 
would  have  won  the  race.  He  exhibited  scarcely  any  distress  after 
the  first  heat,  and  was  only  three  seconds  behind  the  winner.  After 
that,  when  galloping  on  the  road  during  a  protracted  rain,  he  struck 
a  stone  and  wrenched  his  ankle,  which  made  a  permanent  enlarge- 
ment of  the  joint.  To  test  the  tips  in  a  case  of  this  kind,  he  was 
again  put  in  training,  and  up  to  this  date  is  doing  well.  Since  wear- 
ing the  tips  there  has  been  nothing  like  a  quarter  crack,  and  I  am 
well  satisfied  that  it  is  impossible  to  spring  one  of  these  troublesome 
afiairs  when  the  tip  is  worn;  and,  furthermore,  I  have  never  yet  had 
a  race-horse  which  "broke  down"  or  had  a  "bowed"  tendon  unless 
there  was  something  wrong  in  the  feet. 


CHAPTER  V. 

From  Shoes  to  Tips — Further  Satisfactory  Tests. 


I  am  act  pi-epared  to  say  that  one  set  of  experiments,  conducted 
by  one  person,  and  that  person  liable  to  an  uxidue  prejudice  in  favor 
of  a  new  depai-ture,  is  conclusive  testimony  of  the  value  of  ti])s, 
under  all  circumstances.  To  sustain  the  theories,  however,  I  have 
given  the  results  in  cases  which  have  come  under  my  practice,  and 
conclusive  as  they  are  at  present  to  me,  there  may  something  arise 
to  show  that  there  are  defects  which  will  eventually  prove  objec- 
tionable. 

The  whole  system  is  so  simple  that  apparently  it  would  not  require 
long  time  to  either  demonstrate  the  superiority  of  this  method  of 
shoeing  or  to  establish  some  striking  defect.  But,  as  many  are  aware, 
the  results  of  a  few  experiments  are  oftentimes  delusive,  and  only  after 
the  severest  scrutiny  can  an  authoritative  opinion  be  reached.  This 
has  been  tlie  reason  that  I  have  delayed  these  articles,  wishing  to  give 
the  matter  more  study,  and  to  practice  still  further  with  the  horees. 
I  have  been  extremely  anxious  not  to  "jump  at  conclusions,"  and 
determined  to  test,  as  fully  as  in  my  power,  the  practical  working, 
and  noting  the  effects  of  changes  from  tips  to  shoes,  and  fi-om  shoes 
to  tips,  endeavor  to  arrive  at  a  proper  estimate  of  the  relative  merits 
of  each. 

The  more  I  studied  the  matter,  the  less  reason  I  saw  for  the  theory 
proving  erroneous  so  far  as  the  well-doing  of  the  feet  are  concerned, 
biit  I  am  well  aware  that  for  road-horses  and  trotters  there  might  be 


42    .  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

another  di'awback  which  will  be  fatal  to  the  use  of  tips.  This  is 
the  effect  on  the  action,  and  there  may  be  a  necessity  for  weight  on 
the  posterior  portion  of  the  hoof  to  enable  a  horse  to  trot  fast,  and 
the  absence  of  the  iron  at  the  heel  might  induce  a  greater  tendency 
to  shuffle  or  single-foot.  Every  trainer  who  has  had  much  experience 
with  colts,  knows  the  care  which  is  requisite  to  keep  them  trotting 
square,  and  how  frequently,  notwithstanding  his  efforts,  they  will 
"  get  off  their  gait,"  and  retrograde  in  speed.  They  will  do  so  when 
it  will  puzzle  the  most  acute  to  give  a  satisfactory  explanation,  or  de- 
tect the  cause  of  the  change  in  the  action. 

So  far  as  my  experiments  have  shown  with  the  trotting  colts,  there 
was  no  greater  tendency  to  those  hindrances  to  speed  with  tips  than 
with  shoes,  and  those  which  I  have  instituted  since  writing  the  for- 
mer articles  have  been  with  more  of  a  desire  to  test  this  than  anything 
else.  The  result  of  my  own  trials  were  the  only  ones  I  had  for  data, 
as  there  is  such  a  violent  prejudice  with  lior semen  against  innovations, 
particularly  when  that  change  is  an  entirely  different  system  of  shoe- 
ing, that  the  most  enterprising  were  loth  even  to  listen  to  arguments 
in  favor  of  the  change. 

It  is  an  easy  matter  to  convince  any  person  of  ordinary  intelligence 
that  the  feet  are  benefited,  when  a  comparison  is  instituted  with 
those  which  wear  shoes,  as  tliat  is  too  palpable  to  be  contradicted. 
Especially  is  the  variation  from  the  natural  foot,  which  shoeing  causes, 
more  notable  when  the  animal  has  worn  the  ordinary  shoe  a  suf- 
ficient time  to  change  the  entire  structure  of  the  foot,  for  I  am  in- 
clined to  the  belief  that  after  a  horse  has  been  shod  for  a  few  years 
the  foot  can  never  be  brought  back  to  its  original  form.  The  injui-ies 
may  be  palliated,  but  never  entirely  overcome. 

But  while  this  advantage  to  the  foot  is  susceptible  of  demonstra- 
tion, the  bearing  it  has  on  other  subjects  of  imjDortance  is  not  so  evi- 
dent, and  people  are  prone  to  ascribe  difliculties  which  have  arisen 
from  other  causes  to  the  new  departure.  I  have  been  more  anxious 
to  convince  myself  than  others,  and  have  watched  as  carefully,  or 
more  so,  for  radical  defects  than  for  arguments  to  sustain  it.  In  such 
a  case  I  would  have  been  ready  to  give  them  publicity,  as  I  have 
no  pride  in  sustaining  a  position  once  taken,  if  that  position  has  not 


INTELLIGENT  TRAINERS.  43 

a  logical  foundation.  Mere  assertions,  however,  will  not  force  me 
to  suri-ender  convictions,  and  tlie  ipse  dixit  of  the  most  celebrated 
professors  has  little  weight  if  not  sustained  by  proof  of  the  sound- 
ness of  the  objections.  If  I  find  that  the  horses  I  have  tried  are 
benefited  by  the  change  from  shoes  to  tips,  it  is  fair  to  infer  that 
others  in  like  circumstances  will  also  find  a  corresponding  advantage  ; 
and  though  to  prove  the  absolute  improvement,  all  kinds  will  have  to 
be  tested,  the  chances  are  favorable  that  the  good  results  to  the  few 
augur  well  for  the  success  of  the  plan  to  the  many. 

Notwithstanding  the  efforts  of  breeders  to  intensify  the  fast  trotting 
gait,  and  in  which  they  have  succeeded  beyond  the  faith  of  the  most 
sanguine,  it  is,  nevertheless,  in  very  fast  trotting  easily  subject  to 
changes  which  are  inimical  to  improvement.  There  is  a  tendency,  as 
all  trainers  know,  to  forsake  the  true  trotting  step,  and  "  singlefoot " 
and  "hitch''  and  "scramble,"  and  pei-haps  one  or  more  of  a  dozen 
things  which  prevent  further  improvement.  The  animal  may  I'etain 
its  square  action,  and  yet  step  so  short  that  it  cannot  go  fast,  regard- 
less of  how  rapid  the  stroke  may  be  ;  or  it  may  stride  so  long  as  to 
"  dwell,"  and  in  this  case  there  is  usually  a  deficiency  of  "  knee- 
action." 

Intelligent  trainers  are  aware  that  all  of  these  things  may  be  par- 
tially remedied^  in  many  cases  entirely  overcome,  by  a  change  in  the 
shoeing — still  more  by  the  wearing  '  of  weights  and  boots  ;  and  yet 
there  are  animals  Avhich  persist  in  the  faulty  action,  despite  of  all  the 
appliances  of  ancient  or  modern  days.  I  have  faith  that  more  can 
be  accomplished  with  different  varieties  of  tips,  especially  when  colts 
are  the  pupils,  but  there  may  be  individuals  which  will  demand  the 
application  of  the  full  shoe  to  counteract  the  faulty  action  which  the 
animal  persists  in,  though  used  with  many  diffei'ent  styles  of  tips. 

The  necessity  for  a  full  shoe  for  trotting  horses  which  have  a  short- 
ness of  stride,  or  a  tendency  to  forsake  the  true  action  may  arise, 
although  thus  far  I  have  not  found  it  so  in  my  i:)ractice,  though  that 
has  been  confined  to  a  few  animals,  and  those  of  a  kind  which  I 
would  consider  the  most  likely  to  be  benefited  by  the  gi'eater  weight 
in  the  shoe.  The  horse  I  have  experimented  the  most  with  is  X.  X., 
the  colt  alluded  to  in  previous  chapters  as  having  been  used  on  the 


44  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

I'oads  witli  tips,  in  order  to  test  them  where  there  wouhl  Vje  the  max- 
imum of  wear.  Since  writing  the  former  articles,  I  have  used  him 
with  various  tips,  and  changed  him  to  shoes  in  order  to  see  if  the 
additional  weight  would  not  influence  his  trotting  action  more  favor- 
ably. Desiring  that  Lady  Amanda  should  have  company  when  gal- 
loping last  spring,  I  gave  him  a  rough  preparation,  and  ran  him 
against  Emma  Skaggs  and  John  Funk,  a  race  of  niile  heats.  This 
he  won  in  1:.50 — 1:50|,  and  could  have  run  something  faster.  When 
in  training  I  commenced  with  tips,  and  as  they  wore  out  let  him 
gallop  barefoot,  and  he  ran  in  the  race  without  anything  on  his  feet. 
The  tendon  which  was  sprung  got  a  little  "  hot,"  and  he  was  slightly 
lame  in  that  leg,  but  afterwards  we  galloped  him  in  a  sulky  when 
the  heat  and  tendei*ness  diminished,  and  with  the  resumption  of  road 
work  it  got  appai'ently  entirely  sound.  He  has  never  been  really 
well,  and  though  a  package  of  Professor  Going's  worm  powders 
brought  away  a  great  many  of  these  troublesome  parasites,  there 
appeared  to  be  a  fresk  recruit  ready  to  take  their  place.  His  ajipetite 
was  voracious,  and  though  fed  very  high,  when  his  grain  and  hay 
were  consumed  he  would  attack  his  bedding,  the  soiled  portion  being 
devoured  with  as  much  avidity  as  the  best  Oregon  oats,  or  the 
brightest  provender.  When  at  Palo  Alta,  not  long  ago,  Governor 
Stanford  informed  me  that  Jiis  colts  were  ridden  of  worms  by  using 
lime-water,  and  X.  X.  has,  since  his  feed  has  been  wetted  with  it, 
done  much  better. 

Still  he  did  not  improve  in  his  trotting,  and  when  urged  to  go 
faster  would  hobble  behind,  and  mix  his  gait.  When  galloping  him, 
harnessed  to  a  sulky,  he  was  shod  with  very  light  steel  tips,  scarcely 
heavier  than  plates,  on  both  fore  and  hind  feet,  and  he  was  driven 
with  them  on  the  road.  These  I  replaced  with  a  heavier  set,  but  he 
still  persisted  in  hobbling.  I  then  had  him  shod  with  the  ordinary 
shoe,  weighing  18  oz.,  and  still  he  hobbled  when  driven  beyond  about  a 
four-minute  gait.  I  applied  toe-weights  of  from  six  to  twelve  ounces, 
without  improvement,  while  his  knees  went  over  more  than  they  had 
ever  been.  He  had  the  least  knee-action  of  any  horse  I  ever  saw, 
almost  dragging  his  toe  along  the  ground,  with  a  sort  of  twist  when 
he  took  his  foot  up,  turning  it  to  the  inside  as  though  he  did  it  to 


ONE-SIDED  TIP.  45 

avoid  contact  with  the  road.  I  kept  the  shoes  on  longer  than  I 
sliould,  in  order  to  give  him  time  to  become  accustomed  to  tlie 
heavier  weight,  but  being  convinced  that  it  was  useless  to  try  them 
further,  I  replaced  them  with  tips. 

From  his  heel  being  lowered  so  as  to  prepare  the  foot  for  the  shoe, 
the  tip  could  not  be  set  properly,  and  I  was  apprehensive  that  the 
less  amount  of  horn  might  cause  bruising  of  the  sole.  But  from  the 
first  day  he  ti'aveled  better,  going  more  squarely,  though  he  still  had 
the  twist  when  picking  his  foot  up.  The  iiext  time  I  put  tips  on 
him  I  let  them  extend  to  witliin  an  inch  and  a  half  of  the 
heel  on  the  outside  quarter,  and  on  the  inner  shortened  them  so  that 
the  toe  was  only  covered.  There  was  scarcely  any  of  the  twisting 
motion  left — none  at  all  on  the  right  foot,  and  he  has  shown  a  decided 
improvement,  in  eveiy  respect,  since  he  wore  those  one-sided  tips. 

I  have  also  been  trying  the  difference  between  shoes  and  tips  on 
the  Alhambra  filly  previously  mentioned.  When  she  l>ecame  lame 
she  was  taken  to  Mendocino  County  and  turned  out,  running  there 
through  the  winter  and  until  about  the  first  of  July.  After  jogging 
her  for  several  weeks,  I  moved  her  through  the  stretch  and  found 
that  her  stride  was  shortened  from  what  it  formerly  had  been,  and 
the  only  explanation  I  could  give  was,  that  she  had  acquired  the 
habit  from  favoring  her  leg  while  lame.  She  Avas  wearing  tips  with 
holes  in  them  to  apply  the  Eureka  toe-weight,  but  not  increasing 
her  stride  to  a  length  that  was  satisfactory,  I  concluded  to  try  the 
full  shoe,  on  her  fore  feet,  weigliing  about  18  oz.  each.  The  fastest 
mile  she  trotted  while  wearing  the  shoes  was  2:52,  and  they  were 
retained  nearly  three  months  in  order  to  give  them  a  fair  trial. 
Three  days  after  the  tips  were  put  on  she  trotted  a  mile  in  2:48^, 
going  very  steadily  and  apparently  well  within  her  rate.  She  ke])t 
at  about  the  same  mark  for  the  next  month,  though  still  striding 
much  shoi-ter  than  she  did  when  a  three-yeai--old;  and  being  desirous 
to  experiment  furtlier,  on  the  lOth  of  December  I  had  a  set  of  front 
shoes  put  on  weighing  22  oz.  each.  These  are  still  on  her,  and  I 
cannot  say  authoritatively  what  -will  be  the  i-esult,  but  I  am  inclined 
to  the  belief  that  they  are  not  going  to  increase  her  stride  any  moi-e 
than  the  tips  did.       She  certainly  goes  much  easier  in  the  latter,  and 


46  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

the  four  montlis  wear  of  the  shoes  can  readily  be  noticed  in  the  dif- 
ferent appearance  of  her  feet,  there  being  an  evident  conti'action  of 
the  lieels,  with  the  frog  much  narrower  than  when  the  shoes  were 
put  on. 

I  feel  very  confident  that  the  shortening  of  the  gait  was  caused 
by  her  being  turned  out  iw  the  field  (a  very  large  one — two  hundred 
acres)  while  she  was  lame,  and  running  when  she  had  to  favor  the 
limb.  She  would  run  for  half  an  hour  at  a  time,  careering  over  the 
hills,  and  after  feeding  a  little  would  resume  the  play. 

Having  entirely  recovered  from  the  lameness,  I  think  in  time  she 
will  resume  her  former  action.  I  expected  in  this  case  to  find  the 
shoes  preferable  to  tips,  if  even  they  were  not  so  good  for  the  feet ; 
but  so  far  I  have  been  disappointed  in  the  result.  When  I  replace 
the  tips  I  will  extend  them  across  the  foot,  and  thus  get  as  much 
weight  as  possible  near  the  toe  and  leave  the  posterior  part  of  the 
foot  unhampered. 

A  horse  assuredly  puts  his  foot  down  more  gingerly  when  the  iron 
comes  under  the  heel,  and  the  only  reason  I  could  see  for  the  full 
shoe  extending  the  foot  further  than  a  tip,  was  the  greater  amount 
of  weight  in  the  whole  mass. 

The  effect  of  weight  on  the  feet  is  a  drfficult  problem  to  under- 
stand, in  its  bearing  on  the  speed  and  action  of  horses,  especially 
trotters,  and  the  only  reliable  way  is  to  bring  it  to  an  actual  test 
with  trials  on  different  horses.  But  one  thing  few  will  question, 
and  that  is,  that  a  load  of  iron  on  the  feet  is  prejudicial  to  the 
endurance. 

The  trainers  of  race-horses  have  adopted  a  much  lighter  shoe  than 
was  formerly  in  vogue,  and  some  have  discarded  them  entirely.  The 
old-timers  not  only  gave  them  long,  exhausting  sweats,  under  loads 
of  blankets,  as  vide  the  history  of  Hanie's  Maria,  but  they  wore 
heavy  shoes,  their  reasoning  being  that  the  plates  would  be  a  greater 
contrast  and  the  change  give  greater  speed. 

Great  as  has  been  the  change  in  the  management  of  race-horses, 
still  greater  has  been  the  improvement  in  those  who  educate  the 
trotter.  The  most  striking  innovation  has  been  the  use  of  the  toe- 
weight,  though  boots  have  done  a  large  share  in  developing  the  speed. 


AN  IMPORTANT  SUBJECT.  47 

A  pei'son  who  was  without  any  knowledge  of  the  manner  in  which 
trotters  were  handled,  would  think  that  the  driver  was  endeavoring 
to  make  them  slower,  by  fastening  leaden  weigjits  on  their  feet,  and 
hampering  their  limbs  with  so  much  kersey  and  leather. 

I  intend  devoting  several  chapters  to  the  consideration  of  these 
adjuncts,  and  will  endeavor  to  show  that  faulty  shoeing  has  necessi- 
tated the  use  of  boots,  when  they  might  be  avoided,  and  that  the 
principle  on  which  the  toe-weight  depends  for  its  efficacy  is  in  accozxl- 
ance  ^vath  and  harmonizes  with  light  weight  better  than  heavy.  The 
subject  is  of  importance,  and  is  well  worthy  of  much  thought. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

Mistakes  of  Blacksmiths  and  Grooms — Hard  Roads 
AND  THE  Consequences. 


So  far  this  essay  Las  been  written  at  wide  intervals,  delaying  the 
composition  in  order  to  try  further  experiments— the  great  object 
being  to  have  the  theory  corroborated  by  practice.  My  opportunity 
for  practice  has  been  limited  to  a  few  horses,  but,  fortunately,  these 
were  so  different  in  their  action  that  the  paucity  of  numbers  was  not 
such  a  drawback  as  it  might  have  been. 

The  opening  chapter  was  published  in  the  California  S2nrit  of 'the 
Times,  April  29th,  1876.  During  the  last  Summer  the  papers  of 
Great  Britain  have  contained  a  number  of  articles  on  the  abolition 
of  shoes  on  horses,  the  pai-ties  advocating  the  measure  showing 
the  benefit  arising  from  the  feet  being  untrammelled  with  iron. 
Their  opponents  conceded  this,  but  claimed  the  necessity  for  pro- 
tecting the  feet  when  the  animals  had  to  work  over  hard  roads  or 
pavements.  All  which  I  have  seen  on  the  subject  has  foi'tified  the 
position  I  have  taken,  as  the  plan  recommended  in  these  papers  gives 
the  same  freedom,  while  it  protects  the  only  portion  of  the  foot 
which  requires  artificial  protection.  In  this  country  there  is  another 
element  which  enters  into  the  calculation,  and  the  question  of  the 
effect  on  the  action  is  one  of  so  much  importance  that  the  soundness 
of  the  feet  in  one  class  of  horses  is  a  secondary  consideration.  The 
fast  trotter  is  peculiarly  American,  and  in  England  little  is  known 
of  his  requirements.       Here  the  track -horse  represents  an  immense 


A  SINGULAR  INFLUENCE.  49' 

capital,  and  yet  the  value  of  tliese,  which  are  kept  for  the  sole  pur- 
pose of  trotting  in  races,  falls  far  short  of  that  which  the  road-horses 
of  the  country  represent.  Speed  and  endurance  give  the  worth  to  the 
first;  speed  is  the  most  valuable  quality  in  the  second,  provided  it  is 
not  accompanied  by  habits  which  render  the  speed  useless,  or  by  such 
unsoundness  as  unfits  the  animal  for  rapid  driving.  So  long  as  there 
is  not  absolute  lameness,  a  majority  of  the  owners  of  fast  I'oad-horses 
ai'e  satisfied.  A  large  number  of  them  have  so  little  knowledge  of 
the  horse's  foot  that  they  cannot  tell  whether  it  is  in  proper  shape 
or  not,  and  trust  entirely  to  the  blacksmith  and  groom  for  the  treat- 
ment. Unfortunately,  a  large  proportion  of  this  class  of  men  are 
not  only  ignorant  of  the  pathology  and  functions  of  the  foot,  but  an 
immense  percentage  of  them  are  bigoted  in  the  belief  of  the  efiiciency 
of  old-time  pi'actices,  and  too  stubborn  in  this  belief  to  surrender  it. 
They  will  not  listen  to  argument,  and  any  departures  from  the  old 
ruts,  deeply  worn  by  prejudice,  are  stigmatized  as  innovations  which 
ai"e  bound  to  bring  disaster. 

These  men  have  an  influence  over  owners  which  is  as  singular  as 
it  is  potent.  A  gentleman  may  require  that  his  family  physician  be 
educated  in  the  latest  teachings  of  the  schools,  and  will  only  employ 
one  who  has  forsaken  the  old-time  practices  for  a  more  enlightened 
system  of  treatment.  In  any  department  of  business  he  will  give 
the  preference  to  education,  and  readily  acknowledges  the  importance 
of  thought  and  study  in  every  department  of  life  where  learning  can 
be  brought  to  bear.  But  with  horses  it  is  different.  Isfnorance  is  not 
considered  a  bar,  and  he  follows  the  directions  of  a  man  whose  only 
recommendation  is  that  he  is  acquainted  with  the  stable  economy 
which  was  practiced  a  hundred  years  ago.  The  feet  are  mutilated  at 
the  forge,  the  groom  stuffs  them  ^vith  filth,  or  at  the  best  with  com- 
positions which  soak  the  horn  into  a  pulp,  and  what  Nature  designed 
to  be  a  firm  support,  and  to  have  solidity,  is  weakened  by  the  removal 
of  that  which  gave  sti-ength,  and  the  natural  and  firm  foundation  is 
changed,  by  erroneous  treatment,  into  a  tottering  pedestal.  The  feet 
injured,  the  legs  give  way,  and  then  the  poor  animal  is  tortured  with 
virulent  blisters ;  but  as  these  corrosive  vesicants  compel  rest,  in 
that  way  the  animal  is  benefited,  and  if  his  tormentor  woxild  let  him 


50  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS, 

alone  for  time  to  remedy,  the  cure  would  be  equally  as  effectual. 
The  hard  roads  are  blamed  for  the  quackery  of  the  groom  and 
the  blacksmith,  and  when  the  feet  and  legs  are  injured  beyond  recov- 
ery, the  injury  is  ascribed  to  anything  but  the  tme  source.  I  am 
satisfied  that  the  danger  of  hard  roads  to  the  feet  and  legs  of  the 
harness-hoi'se  has  been  gi'eatly  magnified,  and  the  gi-eat  propoi'tion 
of  the  injuries  which  are  claimed  to  be  the  result  of  fast  driving  over 
ordinarily  hai'd  surfaces,  are  directly  traceable  to  other  causes.  In 
this  paper  I  intended  to  consider  the  eflect  of  tips  and  shoes  on  the 
action,  but,  perhaps,  it  may  be  as  well  to  devote  the  rest  of  the  chap- 
ter to  the  elucidation  of  that  portion  of  the  subject,  which  is  so 
important  in  road-driving.  Hard  roads  are  the  rule  in  the  neighbor- 
hood of  cities,  as  even  moderately-soft  highways  would  soon  be  cut 
up  by  the  numerous  vehicles  which  are  driven  over  them.  Deep, 
heavy  roads  are  more  likely  to  injure  the  trotter  than  those  with  a 
smooth,  hard  sui-face,  provided  the  feet  have  their  natural  functions 
preseiwed,  and  a  continued  "  speeding"  over  such  gi'ound  will  result 
in  making  the  animal  slower,  if  it  does  not  irretrievably  injui*e  the 
legs.  A  "  dixi;  road,"  with  loose  soil  enough  to  fill  the  concavity  of 
the  foot,  is  i-ecognized  to  be  the  best  of  all  for  hoi-ses  to  be  driven 
fast  upon;  but  such  ai'e  rai'ely  found,  and,  consequently,  the  drivmg 
has  to  be  done  over  the  common  macadamized  highway,  and,  in  the 
vicinity  of  San  Fi-ancisco,  this  is  covered  with  broken  red  trap  rock. 
This,  when  kept  in  condition,  forms  a  smooth  surface,  and  when  wet 
gives  a  firm  hold  for  the  foot,  though  it  wears  the  shoe  rapidly.  The 
foundation  of  broken  stone  and  this  covering  make  a  roadway  which 
is  nearly  as  soUd  as  the  Belgian  pavement,  the  difference  being  that 
the  top  covering  afibrds  a  safer  rest  for  the  foot,  -with  less  liability 
to  slip.  During  the  dry  season  in  California,  the  soil,  unless  sandy, 
becomes  as  hard  as  the  rock  road,  and  some  of  the  black  adobe  land 
is  fully  as  unyielding,  drying  to  the  hardness  of  a  hard-burnt  brick 
for  several  feet  below  the  surface.  Unless  covei-ed  with  ch'ied  gi-asses, 
there  is  nothing  to  break  the  jar,  and  more  trying  gi-ound  to  the  feet 
it  would  be  difiicult  to  find.  Notwithstanding  this,  the  vaquero 
gallops  his  barefooted  horse  at  a  furious  rate  over  it,  and  goes  down 
declivities  at  full  speed  where  the  English  fox-hunter  would  consider 


PRACTICES  OF  THE  VAQUERO.  51 

it  too  dangerous  to  keep  the  saddle,  and,  if  forced  to  the  route,  would 
carefully  lead  his  shod  steed  down  the  grade.  Seeing  this,  the  East- 
ern horsemen  extol  the  feet  and  legs  of  the  "  mustang,"  and  ascribe 
the  immiinity  from  disease  to  some  natural  quality  which  other 
breeds  do  not  possess.  There  was  no  soaking  in  foot-tubs,  no  band- 
aging of  legs.  Stopping  with  cow-dung  and  clay  never  entered  the 
thoughts  of  the  owner,  and  he  was  as  ignorant  of  "  hoof  ointments  " 
as  he  was  of  all  the  various  shoes  which  have  been  invented  to  "keep 
the  feet  in  order."  His  aim  was  to  harden  the  foot  in  lieu  of  soften- 
ing it,  and  the  sole  was  filled  with  tallow  and  seared  with  a  red-hot 
iron,  when  the  wear,  extending  from  the  toe  back,  made  the  S^nimal 
foot-sore.  The  legs  never  gave  way,  and  though  the  healthy  foot 
had  a  good  deal  to  do  with  the  tendons  remaining  unsprung,  it  would 
seem  as  if  that  were  not  a  sufficient  reason  for  the  limbs  standing 
such  rough  treatment  without  sufiering  serious  injviry. 

Doubtless  there  was  another  favorable  circumstance.  The  saddle 
was  placed  so  far  back  that  the  weight  was  thi-own  on  the  centre  of 
the  body,  and  to  keep  it  in  place  the  "  cinch  "  was  di-awn  until  it  was 
almost  buried  into  the  abdomen.  The  swell  of  the  barrel  was  where 
the  girth  was  placed,  and  the  purchase,  which  the  manner  of  fasten- 
ing afibrded,  fixed  it  in  place  so  firmly  that  it  was  immovable.  The 
trainer  of  race-horses  places  the  saddle  on  the  withers,  and  the  jockey 
bending  forward  until  his  head  is  almost  as  far  in  advance  as  that  of 
the  horse,  the  whole  weight  is  thrown  on  the  fore  legs.  This  weight 
at  every  bound  of  the  horse  comes  like  a  blow,  and  even  the  hundred- 
pound  boy  falls  with  the  force  of  a  battering-ram  on  the  extremities. 
There  is  nothing  to  break  the  concussion,  while  the  vaquero,  though 
nearly  double  the  weight,  is  so  far  back  that  the  yielding  spinal  col- 
umn, and  the  huge,  elastic  muscles  on  either  side  of  the  back-bone,  act 
as  a  spring,  and  the  illustration  heretofore  used,  of  the  spring  truck 
saving  the  wheels,  is  again  appropriate. 

The  race-horse  trainer  says  that  the  horse  cannot  run  so  fast  with 
the  weight  further  back  than  where  he  places  it,  though  I  am  not 
ready  to  assent  to  the  truth  of  this  •  until  some  experiments  are  ti-ied 
to  prove  whether  the  assertion  be  sound  or  not ;  and  until  these  are 
instituted  I  will  not  argue  it.     But  if  the  barefooted  horse   of  the 


52  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

vaquero  can  gallop  over  siich  ground  without  injury  to  the  feet  'and 
legs,  save  the  wear  the  fi'iction  at  the  toe  compels,  why  should  the 
road-horse,  with  only  the  weight  of  the  harness,  and  a  part  of  that 
of  the  shafts,  give  out  ? 

From  all  the  testimony  I  have  been  able  to  obtain,  corns  and  quar- 
ter-cracks were  never  known  in  horses  which  were  not  shod,  and  in 
a  former  chapter  the  reasons  why  this  should  be  the  case  were  par- 
tially given.  A  corn  arises  from~  a  bruise  or  undue  pressure  on  the 
part  where  it  is  located,  and  the  quarter-crack  is  the  result  of  con- 
cussion; while  one  part  of  the  foot  is  bound  by  the  shoe,  the  elasticity 
of  the  Coronary  ligament  forces  the  fibres  apart.  The  textiire  of  the 
horn  has  been  injured  not  only  by  the  condition  of  the  foot  being 
abnormal,  from  the  confinement  of  the  heel,  the  wasting  away  of  the 
frog  and  the  i-emoval  of  the  sole,  but  the  soaking,  the  stuffings,  and 
the  a])plication  of  ointments,  have  destroyed  the  life  of  the  deposit, 
until  it  has  more  resemblance  to  the  foot  of  a  dead  horse  tlian  the 
tough,  elastic  material  which  natui'e  has  given.  The  maceration  in 
the  soaking-tub  is  followed  by  coating  the  surface  with  an  oily  prepa- 
ration, and  this  deceives  the  eye,  as  it  gives  somewhat  the  appearance 
of  the  enamel  which  nature  has  provided.  This  natural  enamel  is  a 
thin  filament  of  great  strength,  when  compared  to  the  horn  beneath 
it,  and  while  it  gives  the  hoof  a  degree  of  hardness  to  withstand  the 
wear  better,  it  also  prevents  the  moistvire  from  soaking  the  agglutin- 
izing  material  which  fastens  the  layers  of  horn  together.  The  smith 
has  rasped  a  gz'eat  part  of  this  glazing  away,  and  the  water  pene- 
trates readily,  is  absorbed,  the  structux'e  weakened,  and  when  the 
blow  comes,  the  expansion  below  being  hampered,  the  fibres  are  torn 
asunder. 

The  "  road-driver  "  may  say:  "What  is  this  to  me  1  My  horses  are 
not  troubled  with  quarter-cracks,  and  I  am  sure  they  are  fi*ee  from 
corns."  I  have  seen  more  quarter-cracks  in  California,  in  four  years, 
than  in  all  my  life  before,  and  this  probably  ai'ises  from  the  long,  dry 
summers,  making  the  customaiy  treatment  of  the  feet  more  injui'ious 
than  in  the  East.  That  it  is  npt  caused  by  tlie  climate  alone  is 
proven  by  the  native  unshod. horses  never  having  quarter-cracks,  and 
it  requires  the  two  causes  to  account  for  them  being  so  prevalent. 


CORNS  AND  CONTRACTION.  53 

Corns  are  far  more  frequent  than  owners  are  aware  of,  and  very 
few  road-horses  are  fi-ee  from  them.  Contraction  of  the  foot,  and 
the  shi-inkage  of  the  frog,  are  nearly  universal  in  horses  which  have 
worn  shoes  for  any  length  of  time.  The  narrowing  of  the  heek  may 
be  so  slight  that  it  escapes  observation ;  the  frog  may  have  a 
fair  width,  and  its  functions  be  nearly  destroyed.  There  is  one 
thing  sure  :  if  it  is  not  brought  into  use,  it  will  not  retain  its 
natural  vigor,  and  circumscribing  its  duties>«Avill  result  in  injury  to  the 
tendon  which  lies  between  the  sensitive  frog  and  the  navicular  bone . 
In  time  the  internal  portion  of  the  foot  is  aifected,  and  the  hard 
roads  are  credited  with  the  damage.  The  injury  extends  to  the 
ankles,  and  they  become  puffed  ;  the  whole  limb  is  aifected  below  the 
knee,  and  this  is  regarded  as  the  most  complete  evidence  to  establish 
the  fact.  The  bug-a-boo  of  a  hard  road  is  a  convenient  scape-goat  to 
carry  the  bundle  which  contains  the  lack  of  knowledge  of  the  smith 
and  the  groom,  and  the  owner  has  to  forego  his  customary  afternoon 
drive  or  make  fresh  purchases  for  the  road  to  destroy. 

In  previous  articles  I  have  called  attention  to  the  shoe  increasing 
the  concussion  on  the  heel,  and  I  think  that  any  person  who  will 
give  aome  thought  to  the  subject  will  agree  with  me  on  that  point. 
With  the  ordinary  shoe  the  blow  comes  entirely  on  the  wall,  or  the 
j  unction  of  the  wall  and  the  sole  ;  in  the  latter  case  corns  result,  and 
in  either  there  is  "soreness"  ending  in  established  disease  of  the 
foot.  The  bar  shoe  owes  its  efficacy  to  distributing  the  concussion 
over  a  wider  surface,  and  by  giving  the  frog  a  chance  to  take  a  por- 
tion of  the  blow.  The  seat  of  the  corn  is  trimmed  away  until  that 
part  of  the  foot  does  not  bear  on  the  iion,  and  the  relief  to  the  poor 
animal  is  immediate.  From  crippling  along  with  short  steps,  he 
strides  out  with  less  fear,  and  the  owner  thinks  that  the  "round" 
shoe  has  some  magical  properties  which  enamors  him  with  its  use. 
Suppose  that  in  lieu  of  the  narrow,  transverse  bar  of  iron,  which 
only  bears  on  the  posterior  portion  of  the  frog,  the  whole  surface  is 
made  available,  and  in  addition  the  spring  gained  by  the  expansion 
of  the  foot  is  brought  into  play.  It  will  not  require  long  arguments 
to  prove  the  greater  benefit  to  be  derived  from  this  in  breaking  the 
jar,  but  the  objection  will  be   offered  that  such  a  course  will  end  in 


54  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

bruising  tlie  heels  and  frog.  We  have  seen  that  such  was  not  the 
case  in  the  horse  of  the  vaquero,  galloping  over  hard  ground  and 
down  hills,  in  many  cases  covered  with  stones,  and  in  my  practice 
with  tips,  for  over  two  years,  it  has  not  occurred. 

Where  the  tip  covered  there  might  be  a  little  discoloration,  and 
the  sole  show  a  few  i-ed  streaks,  when  it  had  been  pared  thin  in  order 
to  shorten  the  toe,  but  the  heels  have  remained  free  from  as  much  as 
a  red  spot,  and  though  when  I  replaced  the  tips  with  shoes,  this  part 
was  cut  down  fully  half  an  inch,  the  horn,  sole  and  bars  were  in 
perfect  condition.  There  was  a  change  in  the  substance  when  com- 
pared with  the  feet  of  those  which  had  worn  shoes,  the  junction  of 
the  wall  and  bars  being  as  hard  as  the  tip  of  the  horn  of  an  ox,  and 
as  touijh  as  it  was  hard.  The  foot  of  the  shod  horse  when  hard  is 
brittle,  but  a  thin  shaving  from  the  one  wearing  tips  was  as  tenacious 
as  whalebone.  As  I  have  stated  before,  I  have  experimented  with 
all  my  own  horses'  X.  X.  being  the  one  with  which  the  most  of  the 
road-ti'ials  have  been  given,  though  all  of  them  have  been  exercised 
more  or  less  on  the  road.  X.  X.  I  have  driven  long  distances— that 
is,  long  distances  for  a  road-horse — fifteen  to  thirty  miles  in  a  day,  a 
great  part  of  the  time  at  the  rate  of  eighteen  miles  an  hour.  I  have 
driven  him  fast  down  quite  steep  grades,  such  as  are  met  on  the  roads 
in  the  suburbs  of  Oakland,  and  there  has  never  been  a  bruise  on  his 
heel.  The  wet  weather  last  winter  compelled  the  "  working  "  of  the 
horses  on  the  road,  and  the  favorite  ground  was  Delaware  street,  from 
where  San  Pablo  avenue  crosses  it,  to  the  top  of  the  hill  to  the  west 
of  the  University  buildings.  The  distance  is  probably  something 
over  three-quai-ters  of  a  mile,  with  a  grade  of  about  eighty  feet. 
One  of  the  boys  would  ride  a  race-horse  I  was  training,  another  a 
ti'otting  filly,  a  very  long  strider,  in  style  and  action  bearing  a  strong 
resemblance  to  Lady  Sufi"olk,  while  I  drove  the  Alhambra  filly 
to  a  skeleton  wagon  or  sulky.  The  race-horse  had  been  injured  in 
his  fore  legs  and  his  fast  work  was  given  up  the  grade.  The  filly  the 
boy  rode  could  move  through  the  stretch  of  the  track  in  forty  seconds 
or  better,  but  on  the  road  she  would  show  a  far  faster  gait.  On  the 
track  the  Alhambra  could  beat  her,  but  coming  down  the  grade,  the 
other  was  the  faster  by  at  least  two  hundred  yards  in  the  three  - 


ELASTICITY  OP  THE  SOLE.  55 

quai-ters  of  a  mile.  The  boy  who  rode  her  weighed  130  pounds,  and 
used  a  ten-pound  saddle.  The  road  was  coated  with  gravel  from  the 
beach,  though  the  continual  rains  kept  it  somewhat  softened,  but  at 
times  it  was  hard.  She  had  worn  tips  from  the  time  I  adopted 
them,  and  her  heels  were  never  bruised.  I  have  never  had  a  horse 
with  bruised  heels  which  wore  tips,  though  I  expected  trouble  of  that 
kind  when  shoes  were  taken  off  and  rejolaced  with  tips,  as  the  heels 
were  not  then  in  the  proper  shape.  With  shoes  I  have  had  horses 
bruise  their  feet  so  badly  as  to  suppurate,  and,  misled  by  a  false 
diagnosis,  ascribed  it  to  gravel,  or  something  else  than  the  true  cause. 
With  the  feet  in  the  natural  condition,  it  would  be  almost  impos- 
sible to  bruise  so  as  to  injure  the  sensitive  portion  in  that  part  of 
the  foot  which  is  supposed  to  require  protection.  The  wall  is  not 
only  very  thick  and  strong,  but  the  angle  between  it  and  the  bars  is 
composed  of  a  material  which  is  nearly  as  dense,  and  when  the  wall 
is  only  a  trifle  lower  than  the  frog,  there  is  an  inch  of  this  horny  sub- 
stance to  protect  the  tissues  above  it.  Shoeing,  by  doing  away  with 
the  natural  functions,  deprives  this  part  of  the  sole  of  its  tenacity, 
and  changes  the  elastic  deposit  into  crumbling  flakes. 


CHAPTEE    VII. 

DiFFEKENCES  OF  OPINION  IN  REGARD  TO  PrOPER  AcTION- 

Effects  OF  Changes  in  Shoeing — Practical 
Examples — Etc. 


The  consideration  of  the  action  of  horses,  trotters  especially,  en- 
tails trouble  at  the  outset.  It  is  a  subject  on  which  there  are  such 
a  variety  of  opinions  that  it  will  be  almost  impossible  to  take  a  de- 
cided position.  One  man  of  great  experience  favors  "  high  action  ; " 
another,  equally  as  well  versed,  prefers  that  which  the  old  writers 
denominated  "  round ;"  and  still  another,  whose  thorough  knowledge 
of  the  subject  is  undoubted,  is  partial  to  as  little  bending  of  the 
knee,  and  the  elevation  of  the  hock,  as  is  consistent  with  sufficient 
length  of  stride. 

The  first  will  say  that  the  action  he  fancies  is  never  accompanied 
mth  a  dilatory  motion,  and  that  the  energy  that  compels  the  super- 
fluous i-aising  of  the  limbs  is  a  token  of  speed.  The  second  will 
claim  that  there  is  a  happy  medium  which  insures  the  best  results, 
and  the  third  will  call  attention  to  the  husbanding  of  the  muscular 
power  and  the  capacity  of  the  latter  to  keep  up  a  more  uniform  rate, 
retaining  the  speed  when  the  others  lose  it.  Fortunately,  there  are 
two  horses  in  California  which  represent  the  extremes,  and  the  two 
are  of  such  merit  that  better  examples  could  not  be  found  if  the 
whole  country  were  prospected.     Judge   Fullerton  is  a  type  of  the 


COLONEL  LEWIS  AND  FULLERTON.  57 

first;  Colonel  Lewis  of  the  last.  Judge  Fullerton  had  such  excess- 
ive action  of  the  fore  legs,  that  a  padded  band  was  necessaiy  to  pro- 
tect the  chest  from  injuiy  from  the  blows  of  the  fore  feet,  and  though 
a  change  in  shoeing  has  obviated  the  use  of  this  buffer,  he  still  brings 
the  shoe  in  close  pi'oximity  to  the  part.  His  speed  is  immense.  It 
is  doubtful  if  there  is  a  horse  on  the  track  which  can  show  a  faster 
brush,  and  I  have  never  heard  of  one  which  made  half  a  mile  in  a 
race  as  fast  as  he  has  shown.  I  consider  that  the  speed  of  Colonel 
Lewis  is  yet  untested.  He  has  shown  a  quarter  in  a  race  at  a  2:11 
gait,  and  at  this  high  rate  appeared  to  be  "jogging."  I  will  allude, 
hereafter,  to  the  action  of  these  horses,  and,  in  the  case  of  Fullerton, 
endeavor  to  show  that  the  change  of  shoeing  which  has  resulted  so 
favorably  is  an  approximation  of  my  theory  of  the  benefit  of  tips, 
and  theii"  superiority  to  shoes  in  a  case  where  there  is  an  excess  of  knee- 
action.  It  is  more  to  the  point,  however,  to  show  that  tips  have 
done  more  to  develop  the  trotting  speed  in  my  practice  than 
shoes,  and  endeavor  to  jDi'ove  that  such  is  the  logical  sequence  follow- 
ing the  study  of  the  action  of  the  trotter. 

I  regret  exceedingly  that  my  attention  had  not  been  directed  sooner 
to  this  portion  of  "  stable  economy."  When  at  Atwood  Place,  in 
the  vicinity  of  Chicago,  I  had  so  many  horses  that  the  test  would 
have  been  complete  ;  and  from  the  result  of  shoes,  differing  in  shape, 
in  weight  and  in  other  respects,  I  am  satisfied  that  had  I  then  known 
the  practical  application  of  tips  and  tee-weights,  I  could  have 
done  much  better.  As  I  noted  daily  everything  in  relation  to  the 
horses,  I  can  look  over  my  journal  and  see  that  I  am  correct  in  the 
statements,  without  depending  on  memory,  which  is  proverbially 
treacherous  regarding  past  occurx'ences.  Every  day  the  exercise  was 
written  down,  the  animals  were  weighed:  before  going  into  training, 
and  the  effects  of  every  sweat,  fast  drive,  gallop,  or  run,  so  far  as 
lessening  the  weight  was  concerned,  noted.  The  time  of  all  the  fast 
work  and  of  the  trials  was  registered,  and  the  dates  of  shoeing  and 
changes  of  shoes  x'ecorded.  I  had  scales  in  the  barn,  and  employed  a 
blacksmith  who  had  his  shop  on  the  place  ;  in  fact,  there  was  every- 
thing needed  to  make  whatever  experiments  I  desired,  with  the  op- 
portunity of  fully  testing  the  result  of  them.     I  had  upward    of 


58  TIPS  AND  TOE-TTEIGHTS. 

forty  horses  in  training — a  few  of  them  with  a  record,  but  mostly- 
green  horses  and  colts.  The  track  was  a  mile,  and  being  a  private 
one,  I  could  keep  it  in  the  oi'der  I  wanted.  That  I  was  reasonably 
successful  is  shown  by  the  trotting  of  horses  I  owned  or  had  in 
charge.  Clara  Gr.  trotted  and  won  the  three-minute  class  in  Buffalo, 
in  1871,  making  2:30— 2:26|— 2:26,  and  could  have  trotted  faster. 
She  won  the  saddle-race  in  2:25,  and  trotted  both  without  a  break. 
She  was  prone  to  leave  her  feet  when  I  first  commenced  to  drive  her, 
even  at  a  slow  gait,  though  she  could  trot  faster  under  the  saddle, 
and  shoeing  had  a  good  deal  to  do  M-ith  the  change.  Ida  May  had  a 
record  of  2:38.  She  showed  ten  seconds  faster,  and  would  trot 
through  the  stretches  a  20-gait  or  better,  but  I  am  satisfied  that  a 
change  in  the  shoeing  to  tips  would  have  resulted  in  a  great  increase 
of  her  speed  for  the  mile.  She  was  a  very  long  strider,  and  having 
spmng  a  quarter-crack — the  only  horse  I  had  troubled  in  that  way 
there — she  was  shod  with  bar-shoes,  though  while  she  wore  them  she 
could  not  trot  so  fast,  and  the  long  sti'ide  was  lengthened.  Nour- 
mahal  won  a  three-minute  race  in  good  time,  and  she  beat  Lady  Mac 
a  dash  of  five  miles  in  13:39,  when  the  track  was  so  soft  that  the 
foot  was  buried  in  it  to  the  depth  of  the  hoof.  It  had  been  frozen 
the  night  before  and  thawed  out — the  worst  kind  of  mud  to  retard 
a  horse.  John  H.,  in  a  few  months'  driving,  trotted  a  half-mile  in 
1:11^,  and  sold  at  auction  sale  for  $7,500,  and  he  has  since  obtained 
a  record  of  2.20  ;  and  I  could  extend  the  list  through  the  "string" 
with  a  fair  showing  of  speed  in  nearly  all  of  them. 

The  retrospect  reveals  many  troubles  which  would  have  been 
obviated  by  the  use  of  tips  and  different-fashioned  shoes  from  those 
I  used  at  the  time,  and  as  it  was  1872  before  I  used  toe-weights, 
until  then  I  was  without  the  benefit  of  their  assistance.  It  took  me 
months  to  overcome  the  tendency  in  Clara  G.  to  single-foot  and  hitch 
in  her  gait,  and  during  that  time  I  had  tried  many  different  shoes. 
The  toe-weight  would  probably  have  counteracted  the  habit  in  a 
short  time,  and  I  think  that  a  heavy  tip  would  have  had  the  same 
effect.  She  trotted  very  wide  behind,  and  going  round  the  turns  she 
would  strike  the  inside  of  her  hind  leg,  sometimes  as  high  as  the 
hock,  with  the  edge  of  the  front  shoe,  and  she  had  to  wear  shin-boots 


EFFECTS  OF  A  HEAVY  SHOE.  59 

which  extended  half  way  up  the  hock.  After  returning  from  Buffalo 
she  increased  her  speed  very  rapidly.  Before  going  there  the  fastest 
half-mile  she  had  ever  shown  on  the  track  at  Atwood  Place  was 
1:1 1|^ — a  quarter  in  35  seconds.  The  next  Summer  she  trotted  at 
several  different  times  the  half  in  1 :08,  and  once  she  was  timed  the 
quarter  in  32|^  seconds,  and  could  always  move  through  the  stretches 
inside  of  34  seconds.  I  could  use  a  lighter  shoe  than  those  of  the 
season  before,  with  the  edge  inside  of  the  horn  and  rounded,  and  the 
shin-boots  much  lighter,  without  extending  above  the  hock.  She 
had  a  habit  of  lying  with  her  foot  under  the  elbow,  and  when  I  got 
her  she  had  a  huge  protubei-ance  there,  i.  e.  "  capped  elbow  "  which 
the  veterinarian  had  to  dissect  out.  She  wore  a  roll  on  her  ankle  to 
protect  it.  The  boy  who  had  always  taken  care  of  her  was  so  sensi- 
tive about  it  that  if  any  one  moved  toward  her  box  he  would  slip 
in  and  remove  the  unsightly  appendage,  and  the  consequence  was 
that  just  before  the  Buffalo  meeting  of  1872  he  forgot  to  replace  it, 
and  the  next  morning  there  was  a  swelling  as  large  as  a  croquet- 
ball.  Another  operation  had  to  be  performed,  and  she  was  laid  up 
when  I  anticipated  her  showing  remarkable  time.  Had  she  worn 
tips  this  could  not  have  occurred,  and  I  am  satisfied  that  she  would 
have  overcome  the  faulty  action  much  sooner  with  them,  and  with 
still  lighter  protection  in  the  way  of  boots. 

Albatross  I  bought  the  Spi'ing  she  was  six  years  old.  She  had  a 
record  of  2:48,  and  two  or  three  months  after  I  bought  her  I  trotted 
her  a  race  when  she  was  beaten  in  2:42.  This  race  took  place  on 
Saturday  and  the  next  Saturday  the  same  horses  were  to  trot  again. 
She  had  been  wearing  an  18-ounce  shoe,  and  a  few  days  before  the 
second  race  I  had  it  replaced  by  one  weighing  28  ounces  and  reduced 
the  weight  of  her  hind  shoes  from  12  ounces  to  6,  Though  a  large 
mare,  she  was  a  short  strider,  and  as  this  was  before  I  had  any 
acquaintance  with  toe- weights,  to  remedy  it  I  could  only  increase  the 
weight  of  the  shoe.  She  won  the  second  race  with  ease,  trotting  in 
2:35,  and  the  following  week  she  showed  a  mile  in  2:31,  a  half  mile 
in  1:13.  In  1863  I  got  Naboclish,  with  a  record  of  2:54.  He  had 
torn  the  quarters  of  his  fore  feet  neax-ly  off,  and  would  cut  the  leather 
of  th»  boot  as  clean  as  if  it  had  been  done  with  a  knife.     He  had  a 


60  TIPS  AND  TOE- WEIGHTS. 

good  deal  of  knee-action,  was  very  rapid,  but  was  so  much  afraid  of 
hurting  himself  that  it  affected  his  gait.  After  driving  him  awhile 
I  put  lighter  shoes  on  in  front,  took  his  hind  shoes  off  and  rounded 
the  horn  at  the  toe  so  that  when  he  struck  his  quarter  the  blow 
would  not  be  felt,  the  boot  offering  ample  protection.  It  gave  him 
confidence  at  once.  At  that  time  I  had  a  training  track  on  my  farm 
in  Iowa,  the  distance  around  it  being  five-ninths  of  a  mile.  I  got 
him  in  April ;  in  August  he  trotted  three  times  around  the  track, 
one  mile  and  two-thirds,  at  a  2:23  rate,  and  I  won  fourteen  races 
with  him  that  Fall  without  losing  one.  During  this  campaign  he 
never  had  a  shoe  on  his  hind  feet,  and  though  he  trotted  on  many 
hard  tracks,  the  horn  did  not  break,  nor  did  he  show  any  tenderness. 
Of  course  it  is  entirely  conjectural  what  the  effect  of  tips  would 
have  been  on  these  horses,  or  whether  toe- weights  would  have  accom- 
plished more  than  the  heavier  weight  in  the  shoes.  But,  reasoning 
from  analogous  circumstances,  there  can  be  little  doubt  that  great 
advantages  would  have  followed  their  use.  In  the  case  of  Naboclish 
it  proved  that  the  bare  hind  feet  could  withstand  the  hardness  of  the 
tracks,  and  in  place  of  the  28  ounces  on  Albatross,  it  is  almost  cer- 
tain that  a  tip  and  toe- weight  of  14  ounces  would  have  been  more 
effectual.  I  am  satisfied  that  with  their  aid  the  defects  in  the  gait 
of  Clara  G.  could  have  been  remedied  in  one  quarter  of  the  time  it 
took,  and  that  the  injuries  to  the  elbow  and  hock  would  have  been 
avoided. 

The  continuation  of  the  history  of  the  work  given  the  Alhambra 
filly  will  show  what  was  the  result  in  her  case.  Her  action  was  such 
that  I  did  not  expect  that  the  tips  would  do  as  well  as  those  horses 
which  had  more  knee-action  and  a  longer  sti::^de,  and  so  I  gave  her  a 
more  thorough  trial  with  shoes  on  than  if  her  gait  had  been  different. 
As  I  have  stated  before,  I  ascribed  the  shortening  of  the  stride  to 
driving  her  when  she  was  slightly  lame,  and  to  her  running  a  great 
deal  when  turned  out  in  the  field  before  she  had  recovered.  She 
wore  shoes  from  August  16,  1877,  to  November  5th,  then  tips  to  De- 
cember 10th.  April  13th,  1878,  I  put  copper  tips  on,  reaching  across 
the  toe,  and  on  May  21st  replaced  them  with  light  shoes  with  very 
low  heels,  so  as  to  give  a  better  fastening  for  a  quartei'-boot.     She 


THE  TRIALS  OF  AVOLA.  6 1 

wore  these  shoes  until  June  3d,  when  they  were  replaced  with  16- 
ounce  ones  with  the  "Eclipse"  ftxstener  for  toe-weights.  She  wore  that 
Aveight  until  July  27th,  when  I  put  on  tips  weighing  6  ounces  each 
with  the  same  weight-fastener,  and  these  she  wore  until  August  18th, 
when  she  sprained  her  hind  ankle  slightly  and  was  again  turned  out. 
The  fastest  mile  she  trotted  when  wearing  the  shoes  from  August 
16th,  1877,  to  November  .5th,  was  2:52.  The  result  of  the  8-ounce 
tips  was  that  on  November  8th  she  trotted  a  quarter  in  forty-one 
seconds,  the  mile  in  2:48|.  Still  I  was  induced  to  try  the  shoes 
again  on  December  10th,  thinking  that  her  heels  were  hardly  in 
proper  shape  for  the  tips,  and  the  horn  being  of  slow  growth  from 
wearing  them  so  long,  the  shoes  might  be  better.  Another,  and  more 
forcible  reason,  was  that  I  had  made  a  present  of  her  to  my  friend 
B.  C.  Wright,  and  I  did  not  want  my  preference  for  tips  to  mislead 
me  with  the  property  of  another,  and  whenever  I  was  in  doubt  re- 
garding the  effect,  I  would  stick  in  that  case  to  the  established  cus- 
tom. Mr.  Wright  was  perfectly  willing  that  I  should  try  the  experi- 
ments, and  from  what  he  had  seen  of  the  benefits  of  the  tips  to  the 
feet,  he  is  using  them  on  the  horses  on  his  ranch  in  Mendocino 
County,  and  finds  such  an  improvement  that  he  says  he  would  not 
have  them  I'eplaced  with  shoes  if  the  blacksmith  would  do  his  work 
for  nothing. 

The  favorable  result  of  the  28-ounce  shoes  on  Albatross  determined 
me  to  try  the  same  plan  with  Avola,  and  each  froiit  shoe  weighed  2  2 
ounces.  While  wearing  them  she  was  driven  on  the  road,  the  wet 
weather  making  the  track  unfit  to  work  upon,  but  as  the  other  filly 
could  beat  her  so  easily,  I  think  that  there  was  no  improvement  while 
she  wore  them.  The  copper  tips  extending  across  the  foot,  the  whole 
portion  anterior  to  the  frog  being  covered,  appeared  to  enable  her  to 
do  better,  but  as  she  kept  cutting  and  bruising  the  quarter  of  her 
near  fore  foot,  and,  owing  to  the  want  of  the  heel  of  the  shoe,  the 
quai-ter-boot  could  not  be  kept  in  place.  The  shoes  put  on  the  20th 
of  ]\Iay  were  very  thin  at  the  heel,  so  as  to  allow  the  frog  to  touch,  and 
with  them  I  used  "  Eureka'  toe- weights — shoe  and  weight,  14  ounces. 
The  2 2d  she  moved  through  the  stretch  in  forty  seconds,  striding 
farther   than  before,  which   I  gave   the   toe- weights   the  credit  for 


62  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEICxHTS. 

accomplishing.  But  with  these  shoes  she  was  inclined  to  hitch  at 
times,  and  I  replaced  them  with  others  weighing  16  ounces  on  June 
3d,  and  the  inventer,  H.  L.  McKinney,  having  sent  me  his  "Eclipse" 
weicht  and  fastener,  I  attached  the  fastener  to  the  shoe.  There 
appeared  to  be  an  improvement,  as  on  the  8th  she  trotted  the  quarter 
in  thirty-nine  seconds — the  toe-weights  9  ounces,  making  25  ounces 
on  each  foot.  On  the  10th  of  July  she  made  the  same  time,  and, 
until  she  became  accustomed  to  this  weight,  I  thought  it  best  to  re- 
strict her  fast  work  to  short  brushes,  for  fear  of  injury  to  the  legs. 
On  the  24th  she  trotted  half  miles  in  1:23 — 1:2U,  and  on  the  27th 
three-quarters  in  2:05 — 2:03^.  The  1st  of  July  I  drove  her  three 
heats  of  a  mile,  the  time  being  2:501 — 2:49 — 2:49;^.  The  work  was 
continued  through  the  month,  and  on  the  24th  of  July  she  trotted  a 
milein  2:47,  the  fastest  she  ever  made  with  shoes  on. 

On  the  27th  of  July  I  put  tips  on  her  front  feet  weighing  6 
ounces  each,  attaching  the  "  Eclipse"  fastener.  This  gave  me  the  power 
to  keep  quarter-boots  in  |)lace  without  the  heels  of  the  shoe,  the  iron 
in  front  holding  the  strap,  which  came  round  the  heel  so  that  it 
could  not  rise.  The  pattern  of  quartei'-boot  was  the  one  which  is 
something  like  a  "  tunnel "  boot,  with  a  strap  going  round  the  foot 
to  keep  it  from  getting  out  of  position.  The  30th  of  July  I  drove 
her  a  mile  in  2:44|.  She  had  the  same  toe- weight  that  she  wore 
with  the  shoe,  and  there  was  a  gain  in  a  few  days  of  2  J  seconds. 
On  the  4th  of  Augtist  I  drove  her  a  mile  in  2:43|,  and  on  the  8tli 
in  2:44|.  This  established  in  my  mind  the  fact  that  she  could  trot 
faster  in  a  6-ounce  tip  than  in  a  shoe  weighing  10  ounces  more; 
though  from  wearing  the  shoes  so  long,  her  heels  were  not  in  the 
best  shape  for  the  tips.  There  was  another  thing  which  caused  me 
a  good  deal  of  trouble.  Her  upper  jaw  is  a  trifle  wider  than  the 
lower,  and  this  entailed  a  sharp  edge  on  the  "  grinders  "  above,  and 
this  edge  had  wounded  the  inside  of  the  cheek  so  that  she  carried 
her  head  much  to  the  side,  with  a  tendency  to  pull  hard  on  one  rein. 
I  filed  the  teeth  as  well  as  I  could,  but  the  injury  was  so  far  back 
that  it  was  difficult  to  get  at  the  seat  of  the  trouble,  and  it  would 
require  an  expert,  like  Di*.  House  or  Dr.  Clark,  to  make  it  eflfectual. 
Still,  the  rude  dentistry  helped  her,  and  she  drove  straighter  after 


RESTRICTED    EXPERIMENTS,  63 

tlie  operation.  On  the  18th  I  checked  her  higher  than  usual,  and 
the  result  of  that  was  a  slight  sprain  of  the  hind  ankle,  not  sufficient 
to  cause  lameness,  though  there  was  heat  and  swelling  of  the  joint. 
I  turned  her  out,  after  fomenting  the  part  for  a  few  days,  not  only 
on  account  of  the  injured  ankle,  but  the  run  would  give  her  mouth 
the  opportunity  to  get  entirely  well,  the  heels  would  grow  down, 
and  as  I  would  be  absent  several  weeks  at  the  fairs,  I  did  not  want 
her  to  have  any  work  I  did  not  witness. 

The  other  tiilly,  Columbine,  alluded  to  in  former  papers,  I  sent  the 
9  th  of  March  to  bi'eed  to  Governor  Stanford's  Electioneer,  so  that 
Avola  was  the  only  trotter  experimented  with  during  the  summer. 
It  may  appear  that  with  no  greater  speed  than  a  mile  in  2:43|  this 
was  not  much  of  a  test,  but  there  are  plenty  of  young  trotters  which 
never  show  as  well,  and  if  there  is  a  decided  improvement  in  this 
rate,  it  is  a  fair  inference  that  there  would  be  a  cori-esponding  increase 
in  that  which  is  faster.  In  all  of  my  experiments  with  tips  on  trot- 
ters, I  have  been  restricted  to  three  animals,  of  the  same  age,  and  of 
something  the  same  breeding.  All  of  them  have  shown  faster  than 
a  2:40  gait  for  a  quarter  of  a  mile,  when  wearing  tips  ;  and  one — San 
Diego — when  a  four-year-old,  made  that  distance  in  thirty-seven  sec- 
onds. With  a  number  to  choose  from,  to  obtain  three  untried  colts 
which  would  make  so  good  a'  showing  would  be  held  very  fair,  and 
without  opportunities  for  selection  I  consider  the  performances  are 
far  above  the  average. 

Columbine  had  very  little  work  in  comparison  with  Avola,  and 
the  latter  has  only  had  a  small  portion  when  compared  with  other 
colts.  The  greater  part  of  my  time  being  occupied  with  my  regular 
business,  I  could  not  give  the  attention  to  the  education  of  the 
horses  which  is  such  an  absolute  requirement  for  them  to  do  well, 
and  hence  there  is  another  drawback  to  take  into  consideration.  At 
Atwood  Place  the  trials  of  one  Summer  would  have  given  me  more 
information  than  ten  years  of  limited  experiments,  and  to  obtain  the 
results  obtained  from  such  a  meagre  list,  strengthens  the  belief  that 
with  fuller  exemplifications  the  benefits  will  be  still  more  apparent. 

Before  closing  this  chapter  it  may  be  as  well  to  refer  again  briefly 
to  Judge  Fullerton.     His  action  is  considered  as  nearly  perfect  as 


G4  TIPS  AND  TOE-WEIGHTS. 

can  be  wlien  thei-e  is  a  sharp  bending  of  the  knee,  and  the  veteran 
trotter  has  certainly  proved  that  he  has  strong  chxims  to  be  consid- 
ered one  of  the  foremost  of  the  celebrities  of  the  tracks.  Until  he 
came  to  California  he  carried  a  fore  shoe  weighing  nineteen  ounces, 
and  then  he  had  to  wear  a  breast-pad  to  keep  him  from  pounding 
his  chest.  Under  Hickok's  charge  the  weight  has  been  gradually- 
reduced  until  that  of  the  front  shoe  is  twelve  and  a  half  ounces 
and  the  hind  one  six  ounces.  It  was  conceded  that  he  faltered 
somewhat  in  finishing  the  mile  with  heavier  iron,  while  at  San 
Jose  and  Stockton  it  seemed  as  if  he  had  a  world  of  speed 
left,  and  came  from  the  distance  home  with  as  much  energy 
as  he  exhibited  when  he  took  the  lead  around  the  first  turn.  The 
pad  on  the  brisket  is  not  required,  and  altogether  the  reduc- 
tion has  been  beneficial.  He  picks  his  fore  feet  up  so  truly,  and 
places  them  so  s{juarely  on  the  ground,  that  a  pair  of  front 
shoes  will  wear  him  a  long  time,  while  nearly  every  two  weeks 
a  new  set  are  made  for  the  hind  feet.  The  bar-shoe  is  used  in  front, 
and  this  partial  bearing  on  the  frog  may  have  a  good  influence. 
Notwithstanding  his  seven  years  of  trotting  in  many  races  per  an- 
num, I  am  of  the  opinion  that  he  could  have  trotted  three  faster 
heats  at  San  Jose  than  ever  before  in  his  life,  and  to  the  difference 
in  shoeing  may  be  ascribed  much  of  this  improvement. 

A  portion  of  this  was  due  to  the  lightening  of  the  iron,  a  part  to 
the  "frogpi-essure"  arising  from  the  bar-shoes.  But  I  am  well  satis- 
fied that  tips  would  have  been  still  more  beneficial,  notwithstanding 
Fullerton's  feet  have  thin  walls,  and  all  of  them  white  in  -color.  It 
may  be  prejudice  which  ascribes  a  greater  weakness  in  Avhite  horn 
than  is  found  in  the  darker  shades,  though  the  idea  is  so  general  ' 
that  it  has  probably  good  grounds  to  sustain  it.  "White  horn  is  more 
easily  cut  with  the  knife,  and  easier  broken  when  a  shoe  is  worn, 
but  as  Naboclish's  hind  feet  were  white,  and  they  endured  fourteen 
hard  races,  and  training  from  Spring  until  Fall,  there  is  little  ques- 
tion of  the  heels  standing  when  the  toe  is  jH-otected  from  wear.  In 
all  probability  a  very  light  tip  would  have  been  found  suflicient  in  a 
horse  with  so  much  knee-action  as  Fullerton,  and  one  weighing  from 
four  to  six  ounces   enough  for  him  to  wear.     Doubtless  the   heavy 


CONTRARY  EFFECTS  OF  WEIGHT.  65 

front  shoes,  of  nineteen  ounces  each,  were  worn  to  extend  his  stride 
but  as  that  was  not  shortened  by  the  reduction  to  twelve  and  a  half 
ounces,  a  further  subtraction  would  have  had  no  ill  effect.  The  race- 
horse strides  further  with  plates  on  his  feet  than  when  he  is  wearing 
traitiing  shoes,  and  though  the  weight  gave  Albatross  a  longer  stride, 
it  was  from  a  directly  opposite  reason,  viz  :  a  lack  of  knee-action. 
The  natural  super-exertion,  in  Fullerton,  was  heightened  by  the 
heavier  shoe,  and,  as  his  stride  was  not  curtailed  by  a  contrary 
course,  the  inference  is  just  which  contemplates  a  still  more  radical 
change.  And  then  comes  the  question  of  the  effect  of  the  weight  on 
the  heel,  which  the  bar-shoe  gives,  in  contradistinction  to  the  weight 
on  the  under  part  of  the  toe,  in  the  tip,  or  on  the  front  part  of  the 
wall,  in  the  toe- weight ;  but  the  consideration  of  these  abstruse 
problems  will  come  in  more  appropriately  hereafter. 


CHAPTER  YIIL 

Endorsement  of  Tips — Three-quarter  Shoe. 


The  following  letter  from  Dr.  TaliafeiTO,  I  take  the  liberty  of  pub- 
lishing, though  that  was  not  the  intention  of  the  author ;  and,  while 
many  have  been  received  of  like  tenor,  so  far  as  an  endorsement  of 
the  use  of  tips,  thei'e  ax'e  objections  in  this  which  require  an  answer: 

San  Rafael,  November  26th,  1880. 

Mr.  Simpson — Dear  Sir: — I  am  glad  we  are  going  to  hear  more 
from  you  in  I'egai'd  to  shoeing,  and  particularly  in  relation  to  tips. 
Everything  you  write  on  that  subject,  and  indeed  on  every  subject 
pertaining  to  horse  matters,  is  very  interesting.  I  used  last  winter 
on  my  riding  mare  the  tips  put  on  in  the  manner  recommended  by 
you  about  a  year  ago,  i.  e.,  cutting  away  the  crust  until  the  shoe  is 
upon  a  level  with  the  sole  of  the  foot.  It  answered  admii-ably  during 
the  winter  and  spring  months,  but  when  the  dry  season  sets  in  our 
roads  become  very  hard,  and  my  mare  wears  away  the  frog  and  heel 
as  if  they  had  been  ground  on  a  grindstone.  Besides  riding,  I  drive  * 
the  mare  a  great  deal,  and,  whether  riding  or  driving,  I  use  her  very 
fast.  She  is  thoroughbred,  and  the  hardest  animal  on  the  foot  and 
shoe  I  ever  saw.  I  have  been  partial  to  the  tip  for  a  good  many 
years,  and  went  at  them  with  renewed  vigor  after  reading  your 
article  some  two  or  three  years  ago  on  the  subject.  On  a  Monday  • 
filly  I  have,  I  encountered  the  same  difficulty  in  the  dry  season,  and 
have  had  to  give  up  the  tips  by  reason  of  lameness  caused  by  tender- 
ness of  the  heel.     I  shall  always  use  the  tips,  however,  put  on  as 


HAMPERING   THE    GROWTH,  67 

recommended  by  you,  every  winter,  for,  if  for  no  other  reason,  it 
leaves  the  foot  in  such  splendid  condition  to  go  through  the  summer 
with.  I  have  not  seen  that  any  one  else  has  made  any  report  to  you 
concerning  this  matter,  and  have  simply  mentioned  my  experience  in 
order  that  you  may  take  it  for  what  it  is  worth. 

Alfred  W.  Taliaferro. 

The  subject  is  so  important  that,  in  my  estimation,  it  overshadows 
any  other  part  of  stable  economy,  or  any  one  jjhase  in  the  manage- 
ment of  horses,  especially  young  colts.  I  am  fully  satisfied  that  the 
only  draAvback  to  the  training  of  yearling  trotters  is  the  fancied 
necessity  of  shoes.  When  thoroughbreds  are  galloped  at  that  age, 
they  ax'e  left  unshod,  and  hence  there  is  no  injury,  but  the  impression 
being  so  general  that  the  weight  on  the  fore  feet  is  an  imperative 
necessity  with  the  young  trotter,  shoes  are  woi-n.  Until  that  is  re- 
moved there  will  be  serious  injuries  following  the  use  of  the  full  shoe. 
At  this  pei'iod  of  life  the  foot  grows  more  rapidly  than  at  any  other 
age.  Hampering  that  growth  is  sure  to  be  followed  by  a  structural 
change,  which  can  scarcely  be  remedied  in  after  life.  Only  a  few 
days  ago  I  saw  a  number  of  yearlings  which  had  been  shod  for 
months,  and  two-yeai'-olds  which  had  worn  shoes  for  a  year  or  more. 
A  glance  disclosed  that  the  feet  were  not  in  normal  condition,  every 
one  having  more  or  less  of  a  cramped  look.  Few  are  aware  of  the 
"  spring  "  there  is  to  the  foot  of  a  hox-se  which  has  never  been  shod, 
compared  with  the  rigid  box  of  the  animal  that  has  worn  shoes.  The 
instrument,  which  I  used  for  a  time  to  prepare  the  foot  for  the  tips, 
discloses  this.  It  is  clamped  on  the  foot,  a  small  lever  giving  the 
pressure,  and  though  the  power  is  only  suflScient  to  hold  it  in  place, 
the  elasticity  is  obvious.  Applied  to  the  shod  foot  there  is  none  of 
this  yielding,  and  a  notch  or  two  in  the  ratchet,  which  holds  the  lever, 
is  all  that  it  can  be  moved,  whei-eas  it  passes  over  quite  a  space  in  the 
other.  The  reference  so  often  to  X  X  is  compulsory,  inasmuch  as 
the  experiments  in  the  last  two  years  have  been  mainly  confined  to 
him.  His  foot  measui-es  a  little  oyer  five  inches  transversely,  the 
length  five  inches.  This  is  the  natural— or  nearly  so — proportions 
of  the  foot,  though  in  a  horse  which  has  never  worn  shoes,  the  trans- 


68  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

verse  diametei*  will  still  more  exceed  the  longitndirial,  the  base  being 
very  nearly  a  true  circle.  Having  a  set  of  shoes  worn  by  Sauta 
Claus,  I  made  a  comparison  of  these  and  the  foot  of  X  X.  This 
must  be  prefixed,  however,  with  the  statement  that  Santa  Claus  has 
an  extraordinarily  good  foot,  and,  for  a  horse  which  has  worn  shoes,  it 
is  in  remarkably  good  condition,  no  doubt  owing  to  the  extra  care 
taken  in  his  shoeing.  The  transverse  measurement  of  the  shoe  is 
4  13-16  inches;  it  is  5  7-16  long.  Doubtless  the  horn  projected  a 
ti'ifle  over  the  sides,  and  did  not  come  flush  with  the  heel.  From 
the  marking  on  the  iron  it  came  within  3-16  of  the  heel,  which 
would  leave  5;^  iaches,  though  in  all  probability  it  was  not  set  flush 
with  the  toe.  The  foot  of  X  X,  resting  on  a  paper,  made  an  im- 
pression which  a  circle  entirely  enclosed.  The  imprint  of  the  shoe 
of  Santa  Claus  showed  an  inch  posterior  of  the  circle  struck  from  a 
center  the  same  distance  in  the  rear  of  the  toe  as  one-half  the  trans- 
verse diameter.  This  proves  the  structural  change  incidental  on 
shoeing,  and  when  a  naturally  superior  foot,  supplemented  with  the 
very  best  care,  exhibits  this  departui-e  from  the  true  form,  what 
must  be  the  efiect  on  the  foot  of  a  yearling,  hampered  with  the  full 
shoe  at  the  most  active  period  of  growth  1  Something  akin  to  that 
which  the  infant  shoe,  continued  on  the  ladies  of  high  bu-th  in 
China,  during  the  period  of  growth,  displays,  with  the  deformity  as 
much  pronounced  in  degi-ee.  The  tip,  properly  adjusted,  does  not 
interfere  with  the  growth  in  the  least.  Placed  anterior  to  the  widest 
■diam_eter,  the  growth  is  not  hindered,  and  the  horn  is  at  full  liberty 
to  expand  in  every  direction.  On  Wednesday,  the  first  of  this  month 
(December),  the  off"  fore  foot  of  Anteeo  was  placed  on  a  paper,  and 
the  outline  accurately  marked.  This  was  bisected  with  a  line  from 
the  center  of  the  toe  to  the  heel,  and  midway  of  these  points  a  right 
angle  was  struck.  The  length  was  4|  inches,  and  the  width  was 
exactly  the  same.  A  circle  from  the  point  at  the  intersection  of 
these  two  lines  struck  the  toe,  outside  quarter,  and  the  heels,  but 
came  a  little  outside  of  the  inside  quarter ;  otherwise  the  foot  was 
nearly  round.  The  disparity  in  tke  growth  of  tlie  diffei-ent  sides  of 
the  foot  is  partially  owing  to  natural  causes,  partly  to  individual 
characteristics.     As  all  men  who  have  given  attention  to  the  horse's 


WEAR    ON    THE    OUTSIDE.  63 

foot  are  aware,  the  horn  on  the  inside  quarter  is  thinner  than  on  the 
outside  of  the  foot,  and  the  formation  of  the  wall  straighter  on 
the  inner. 

Anteeo  throws  the  most  of  the  stress  on  the  outside,  as  is  proven 
by  the  greater  wear  of  the  tip  on  that  side,  and  in  this  respect  he 
is  like  a  large  majority  of  the  horses  we  have  had.  That  a  colt 
nineteen  months  old  should  have  a  foot  within  half  an  inch  in  width 
of  one  which  is  nearly  nine  years  old,  who  is  a  hand  taller  and  three 
hundred  pounds  heavier,  is  positive  proof  of  how  soon  the  hoof  gets 
its  growth,  and  the  danger  of  restricting  that  growth  at  so  critical  a 
period.  Although  Anteeo  has  only  woi'n  hind  shoes  from  August 
6th  to  November  10th,  with  an  interval  in  September  when  shoes 
and  tips  were  pulled  off,  it  is  perceptible,  on  close  scrutiny,  that  even 
that  short  time  had  a  prejudicial  effect.  On  November  10th,  the 
shoes  wei-e  replaced  with  those  which  merely  covered  the  toe  and  the 
outside  quarter,  and  from,  hence  these  are  the  only  kind  he  will  wear 
as  long  as  he  is  under  my  control,  or  until  I  see  good  cause  for  for- 
saking them.  The  wear  on  the  outside  of  the  hind  feet  of  both  he 
and  XX  is  still  more  pronounced,  and  either  will  wear  a  full  shoe 
completely  through  on  that  portion  when  the  inner  is  intact.  These 
three-quarter  shoes  are  the  only  kind  which  XX  has  worn  for  some 
time,  and  they  give  perfect  satisfaction  so  far. 

The  objection  which  the  correspondent  has  to  the  wearing  of  tips 
in  the  summer  time  can  be  overcome  with  the  use  of  this  kind  of 
shoe,  and  in  this  chapter  a  cut  is  given  showing  the  kind  tried  on 
the  fore  foot,  with  marked  success.  Still,  I  am  satisfied  that  no 
matter  how  hard  the  roads  are,  with  due  preparation  of  the  foot, 
tips  can  be  worn  at  all  seasons.  In  Oakland  the  winter  is  the  most 
trying  time.  The  Oakland  streets  are  constructed  of  broken  stones, 
with  gravel  or  crushed  rock  for  the  supersti-ucture.  The  country 
roads  are  mainly  coated  with  gravel,  and,  when  wet,  the  attrition 
wears  the  horn  more  rapidly.  It  is  like  the  application  of  water  to 
the  grindstone,  and  that  when  the  horn  is  softer  from  the  absorption 
of  moisture.  When  tips  were  firs*  used,  I  did  not  anticipate  that  it 
would  do  to  drive  a  horse  on  the  Oakland  streets  and  the  drives  I 
most  fancied  constantly,  and  though  convinced,  from  the  first,  that 


70  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

foi'  track  purposes,  and  on  ordinary  country  roads,  they  would  meet 
with  all  the  requirements,  I  would  not  have  been  disappointed  had 
they  been  found  wanting  after  so  severe  a  test.  As  stated  hereto- 
fore, XX  has  only  worn  two  pairs  of  front  shoes  in  five  years.  He 
has  been  in  constant  use  on  these  streets  and  roads,  and  latterly  he  has 
been  given  long  and  rapid  drives  with  scarcely  a  day's  intermission. 
The  wall  and  bars  are  worn  nearly  level  with  the  frog,  though  there 
is  plenty  of  horn,  and  the  frog  is  full.  There  is  not  a  particle  of 
discoloration,  or  indication  of  bruising ;  his  feet  ai'e  cool,  and  the 
tendon  which  was  injured  when  weai"ing  one  set  of  shoes,  at  the  time 
"  Spanish  Charley  "  had  him  in  training  at  Sacramento,  is  now  as 
"  clean"  as  it  ever  was,  and  the  most  skillful  veteiinarian  would  fail 
to  decide  which  leg  had  met  with  the  injuiy. 

The  three-quarter  shoe  will  entirely  obviate  the  difficulty  Dr.  Tal- 
iaferro mentions. 


The  illustration  is  a  copy  of  one  of  a  pair  of  shoes  made  after  a 
pattern  sent  to  William  Zartman,  Petaluma.  The  intention  was  to 
use  it  with  the  toe-weight  which  Mr.  Zartman  has  patented,  and  by 
getting  them  made  at  headquarters  an  assurance  was  given  that  the 
spur  would  be  properly  made,  and  the  shoes  such  as  were  wanted. 
As  the  various  kinds  of  toe-weights,  their  uses  and  abuses,  will  form 
a  distinct  chapter  of  the  treatise,  it  is  unnecessary  to  say  more  at 
present  than  that  the  Petaluma  is  meritorious,  equaling  the  best  in 


CORRECTING   FAULTY   ACTION.  71 

nearly  every  respect.  The  objects  in  using  shoes  of  that  pattern  on 
the  forefeet  wei-e,  in  the  first  place,  to  remedy  a  faulty  method  of 
picking  up  the  foot,  to  see  if  it  allowed  the  proper  elasticity  at  the 
heel,  and  should  it  be  proven  that  tips  could  not  be  used  on  streets 
and  roads  like  those  of  Oakland,  it  might  take  the  place  of  them, 
obviating  the  greatest  drawback  of  the  full  shoe.  The  experiments 
were  satisfactory  on  all  these  points.  The  peculiarity  in  action  con- 
sisted of  the  horse  lifting  the  foi'efoot  with  a  kind  of  a  twist,  in  which 
the  inner  side  was  elevated  more  than  the  outer,  and,  on  the  hypo- 
thesis that  unequal  weight  acts  in  carrying  the  foot  towards  the 
loaded  part,  it  was  expected  that  the  defect  would  be  remedied. 

Nearly  twenty  years  ago  I  experimented  with  a  pacing  horse,  and 
tested  this  theory  until  satisfied  of  the  truth  of  it.  This  was  de- 
scribed in  "  Horse  Portraiture,"  though  at  that  time  I  had  never 
heard  of  the  application  of  weight  to  the  horse's  foot  in  any  other 
method  than  in  the  shoe,  or  the  loaded  quai-ter-boot.  The  pacer  was 
a  most  inveterate  "  knee-knocker,"  and  by  making  the  outside  of  the 
shoe  very  much  heavier  than  the  inside,  and  using  a  contrivance 
placed  in  the  "fork,"  he  was  cured, of  the  propensity.  It  is  certain, 
however,  that  a  greater  effect  is  obtained  from  the  weight  being 
placed  higher  up  than  the  sole  of  the  foot,  though  in  many  instances 
the  lower  application  of  it  will  be  found  sufficient.  With  the  first  use 
of  toe-weights  it  was  thought  that  the  advantages  came  from  the 
weight  entirely,  and  hence  horses'  legs  were  ruined  by  caiTying  loads 
which  permanently  injured  the  tendons.  Now  it  is  demonstrated 
that  it  is  the  inequality  of  distribution  which  gives  the  best  efiect,  and 
that  a  6-oz.  weight  on  a  shoe  of  10  oz.  is  as  effectual  as  16  oz.  on  one 
which  weighs  1^  lbs.  There  being  an  entire  absence  of  weight  on 
the  inside  quai-ter,  that  on  the  outside  had  a  more  potent  effect. 
"  Side-weights  "  on  the  fore  feet  are  inadmissable,  as  there  would 
be  greater  danger  of  injury  to  the  hind  legs  when  put  on  the 
outside,  or  the  knee  and  arm  if  the  excrescences  were  on  the 
inner.  The  toe-weight  can  be  given  an  angle  in  either  direction, 
though  there  are  serious  objections  to  using  it  in  any  other  than 
a  straight  line.  Thus  I  was  compelled  to  substitute  something 
akin  to  the  former  experiences,  and,  as  will  be  noticed  in  the  cut, 


72  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

the  heel  of  the  shoe  was  made  wide  enough  to  cover  the  whole  space 
between  the  frog  and  the  wall.  It  was  made  thin  in  order  that  the 
foot  might  be  kept  level,  as  well  as  permitting  the  frog  to  perform 
its  functions.  Only  one  side  was  fettered,  and  even  that  free  in 
comparison  with  the  rigid  embrace  of  the  full  shoe.  It  is  well 
known  that,  owing  to  the  thinness  of  the  horn  on  the  inner  side  of 
the  foot,  there  is  a  far  greater  degree  of  elasticity  in  that  portion, 
and  even  if  the  outer  was  somewhat  bound,  much  of  the  injurious 
result  of  conti-action  is  obviated.  Much  stress  has  been  laid  on  the 
propriety  of  resti'icting  the  nailing  to  the  anterior  part  of  the  wall, 
and  it  is  certainly  a  better  plan  than  to  drive  them  further  back. 
The  friction,  however,  between  the  wall  and  the  iron  soon  wears  a 
depression,  and  this  prevents  the  expansion  in  a  great  measure. 
With  the  full  shoe  the  two  grooves  are  nearly  equivalent  to  back 
nailing,  and  the  posterior  part  of  the  wall  is  held  together  as  though 
it  were  locked  in  a  vise.  A  glance  at  the  engraving  will  show  that 
the  weight  of  the  animal,  when  thrown  on  the  foot,  will  have  the 
effect  of  increasing  the  expansion  of  the  inner  quai-ter,  and  the  deli- 
cate mechanism  enclosed  in  the  horny  covering  will  have  nearly  as 
much  room  as  in  the  natural  state.  The  frog  is  employed,  and  the 
labor  keeps  it  in  health.  This  has  been  the  savior  of  the  Goode- 
nough  shoe,  and  has  kept  it  in  use  notwithstanding  the  serious 
defects  which  mar  it.  People  sneer  at  the  preface  to  the  advertise- 
ment, and  chuckle  over  the  alliterative  phrase,  "  No  frog,  no  foot ; 
no  foot,  no  horse."  Bu.t  this  has  been  the  redeeming  trait,  and  the 
inventor  is  worthy  of  great  credit  for  insisting  on  permitting  this 
important  organ  to  do  the  duty  it  was  intended  to  perform.  Mr. 
Goodenough  came  very  near  adopting  the  right  method,  and  had  he 
battled  with  the  same  persistency  for  a  still  closer  adherence  to 
nature  he  would  have  accomplished  more  than  he  has.  Perhaps  not. 
In  that  case  he  would  have  met  with  a  greater  degree  of  stubborn- 
ness, and  the  whole  rejected,  whereas  it  is  about  the  only  improvement 
which  has  had  any  favor ;  it  has  held  its  own  in  the  face  of  ignorant 
opposition,  and  opposition  which  was  characterized  by  scenes  which 
were  strangely  in  contrast  with  any  degi*ee  of  common  sense.  In 
Chicago,  some  eight  years  ago,  many  of  the  journeymen  blacksmiths 


THE    GOODENOUGH    SHOE.  73 

refused  to  nail  them  on,  and  they  paraded  the  streets  with  banners 
and  mottoes  to  intimidate  theii-  "  bosses  "  from  using  them. 

At  that  time  I  had  several  long  conversations  with  Mr.  G.,  and 
gave  the  shoes  a  trial,  being  in  the  main  pleased,  though  the  cutting 
of  the  channel  so  deeply  I  was  opposed  to,  and  endeavored  to  remedy 
that  by  having  the  shoes  flattened  at  the  heels.  Among  other  things 
which  were  discussed,  was  the  cause  of  corns,  and  he  very  correctly 
ascribed  the  origin  of  them  to  the  pressure  of  the  ordinary  shoe. 
David  A.  Gage  had  a  tine  road-horse  which  was  grievously  troubled 
Avith  them,  and  at  Mr.  Groodenough's  suggestion  tips  were  put  on 
him.  He  went  much  ])etter,  biit  owing  to  the  erroneous  method  of 
preparing  the  foot  they  had  to  be  given  up.  Had  Mr.  Goodenough 
had  the  channel,  which  he  directed  to  be  made  for  the  reception  of 
his  shoe,  cut  only  far  enough  back  to  receive  the  tip,  allowing  the 
whole  of  the  posterior  part  of  the  foot  to  rest  on  the  ground  as  well 
as  the  frog,  there  wouLl  have  been  but  Kttle  variation  from  the  treat- 
ment recommended  in  these  papers.  It  is  rather  surprising  that  he 
did  not  come  to  the  conclusion,  and  that  if  there  were  so  many  bene- 
fits to  be  derived  from  "  frog-pressure,"  there  must  have  been  analo- 
gous advantages  following  the  other  natural  provisions  against  the 
injuries  arising  from  concussion  and  conti"action.  The  trouble  was 
that  he  overrated  the  beneficial  efiects  of  frog-pressure,  and  in  esti- 
mating: that  it  would  make  amends  for  all  the  evils  which  follow 
shoeing,  he  did  not  progress  to  the  ultimate  point.  His  shoe  is  a 
thick  one,  requiring  so  deep  a  cutting  away  of  the  hoi'n  that  the  con- 
tinuity between  the  wall  and  sole  is  weakened,  and  had  it  not 
been  for  the  jar  being  so  much  weakened  by  the  frog,  the  animal 
would  have  been  lamed  in  a  brief  period. 

Many  think  that  the  wall  and  sole  of  the  horse  are  the  same,  and 
that  the  difierence  in  texture  is  owing  to  something  they  never 
ti-oubled  themselves  to  discern.  Though  intimately  connected,  they 
are  entirely  difierent,  and  maceration  will  separate  them  in  a  short 
time.  It  is  obvious  that  when  the  junction  is  made  so  much  thin- 
ner, especially  at  the  weakest  point,  iijjury  must  arise  from  the  cut- 
ting away  of  the  horn  of  the  wall  and  sole  to  such  a  depth  as  is 
necessary  to  imbed  a  thick  shoe  so  that  the  gx'ound  sui-face  is  on  a 


J 


74  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS, 

level  witli  the  frog.  In  the  instances  which  Dr.  Taliaferro  gives,  the 
probable  cause  of  the  soreness  was  the  wearing  away  of  the  outer 
side  of  the  foot  until  it  is  something  like  the  channeling  which  the 
Goodenough  process  directs.  Finding  that  such  a  large  majority  of 
horses  wear  the  outside  the  most,  without  direct  examination,  the  as- 
sumption is  probably  correct.  The  gliding  motion,  which  is  a  pecu- 
liarity in  the  action  of  the  blood-horse,  entails  greater  friction  and 
greater  wear ;  and  the  feet  having  been  pared  during  the  time  when 
shoes  were  worn,  the  growth  of  one  winter  is  not  enough  to  with- 
stand the  work  of  the  summer.  The  three-quarter  shoe  will  remedy 
this,  and  the  benefits  which  arise  from  the  whole  foot  being  unfet- 
tered for  one-third  of  the  time  will  enable  the  animal  to  wear  this 
form  of  shoe  with  good  results.  It  is  so  much  better  than  the  ordi- 
nary kind  that  it  does  not  require  long  arguments  to  prove  the  supe- 
riority. The  setting  must  be  the  same  as  the  tips,  the  shoulder 
square  where  it  ends  on  the  inner  side  of  the  toe,  and  the  inner  side 
of  the  foot  left  flush  with  the  ground  surface  of  the  iron. 

There  is  a  pi'evailing  opinion  that  low  heels  increase  the  strain  on 
the  tendons  of  the  fore  legs,  and  this  is  so  generally  entertained  that 
it  has  beei:i  reiterated  over  and  over  again  in  arguments  against  the 
use  of  tips,  and  generally  in  a  confident,  dogmatic  way  that  was  to 
end  the  argument  at  once.  Veterinarians  are  nearly  unanimous  in 
recommending  that  the  heels  be  raised  when  an  animal  is  suffering 
from  a  sti-ain  of  the  back  tendon.  The  propriety  of  that  treatment 
we  shall  not  question,  at  least  in  this  article,  but  attempt  to  show 
that  there  is  less  danger  of  "  breaking  down,"  or  severe  strains  when 
the  foot  is  low  enough  at  the  heel  to  allow  the  parts  to  perform  their 
natural  functions.  The  muscles  are  the  main  motive  force  in  ani- 
mals, and  this  arises  from  the  power  they  possess  of  dilatation  and 
contraction.  In  some  parts  of  the  frame  they  act  directly,  in  others, 
through  tendons.  These  are  firm,  compact  bands  of  white  bundles 
of  fibres,  very  nearly  insensible,  though  the  sheathing  or  covering  is 
acutely  sensitive  when  there  is  inflammation.  In  a  former  article 
(page  33)  there  was  a  cut  showing  the  cannon,  sesamoid,  pastern  and 
coronet  bones.  "When  published  before,  the  object  was  to  show  that 
a  shoe  which  projected  behind  the  heel   was  injurious,  the  cut  and 


DECREASED    STRAIN   ON   THE   TENDON,  75 

the  coinments  being  copied  from  Miles'  essay.  He  very  forcibly  ex- 
plains why  the  long  shoe  was  bad,  and  if  so  bad,  the  argument  was 
still  stronger  for  leaving  the  posterior  part  of  the  foot  as  nature 
made  it.  The  high  heel  has  the  same  bad  effect  as  a  long  shoe,  with 
the  addition  of  being  still  worse  from  placing  the  bones  in  a  more 
upright  position,  the  baleful  influence  extending  to  when  the  animal 
is  not  in  motion.  The  cut  does  not  show  the  whole  of  the  coronet 
bone,  as  Miles  terms  it,  though  it  is  usually  called  the  lower  pastern 
bone ;  below  that  is  the  navicular  or  shiittle  bone,  and  the  cofiin  or 
pedal  bone,  The  front  part  of  the  latter  retains  about  the  same  ob- 
liquity as  the  two  above  it.  The  na\4cular  is  a  transverse  bone, 
and  the  union  of  three  form  the  joint  which  is  the  most  susceptible 
of  injury  of  any  in  the  frame  of  the  horse,  not  even  excepting  that 
of  the  hock.  The  tendon  passes  under  the  navicular  bone,  resting 
upon  the  sensitive  frog,  an  inch  or  more  back  from  the  point.  It  is 
evident  that  if  the  heel  is  raised  more  than  is  natural,  that  the  angle 
■will  be  more  upright,  and  a  wrong  "  set "  given  to  the  navicular 
joint,  and  this  is  followed  by  the  upper  pastern  bone,  and  again  by 
the  cannon,  in  order  to  restore  the  harmony  of  position  which  has 
been  disturbed.  This  can  only  be  carried  as  high  as  the  knee,  which 
is  "  sprung "  forward  to  relieve  that  joint  as  much  as  possible. 
Therefore  it  is  palpable  that  the  elevation  of  the  heel  gives  a  wi'ong 
placing  of  the  bones,  and  this  must  exert  an  influence  on  the  ten- 
dons and  ligaments,  which  is  injurious.  All  ai-e  aware  of  the  ex- 
haustion which  results  from  keeping  one  position,  especially  if  that 
be  an  unusual  one. 

The  arm  held  at  right  angles  from  the  body  can  only  be  sustained 
for  a  short  time,  and  to  stand  in  a  rigid  postui-e  can  only  be  endured 
for  a  few  minutes.  It  may  be  that  the  trouble  begins  long  before 
the  actual  injury,  and  the  constraint  arising  from  the  abnormal 
placing  of  the  feet  and  limbs  is  the  commencement  of  the  difliculty. 

As  has  been  stated  in  prior  articles,  experience  has  shown  that  in 
every  horse  of  mine  which  has  given  way  in  the  tendons,  there  has 
been  something  wrong  vnth.  the  feet.  Very  trivial,  perhaps,  and 
only  noticeable  after  the  strictest  scrutiny,  yet  not  in  a  truly  natural 
condition.     A  slight   contraction,  narrowing  and   hai'dness  of   that 


76  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

part  of  the  fi'Og  which  touches  the  gi-ound,  a  little  extra  heat  per- 
ceptible, apparently  a  trifling  ailment  which  would  be  entirely  over- 
looked by  a  person  who  was  not  familiar  with  an  actually  natural 
foot.  Still,  if  one  foot  was  affected,  that  leg  was  the  first  to  yield, 
and  though  a  horse  might  break  down  with  the  best  of  feet,  the  con- 
junction is  worthy  of  notice. 

It  is  not  necessary  to  enter  into  a  minute  description  of  the  ten- 
dons of  the  fore  leg,  being  sufficient  to  state  that  they  are  acted  upon 
by  the  huge  muscles  which  clothe  the  shoulder,  and  follow  the  radius 
until  connected  with  the  tendons  near  the  carpus.  There  is  a  tre- 
mendous force  in  these  massive  bundles  of  fibres,  and  this  power  is 
needed  to  send  the  animal  along  at  such  a  pace  as  the  fast  galloper 
can  make.  The  old  idea,  not  yet  surrendered  by  ninety-nine  in  a 
hundred  of  horsemen,  that  all  the  fore  legs  had  to  do  was  to  support 
the  body,  while  the  hind  propelled  it  through  the  air,  is  eSectually 
exploded  by  the  instantaneous  pictures.  The  last  supreme  effort  be- 
fore the  horse  is  hurled  through  the  air  is  made  by  one  fore  leg,  and 
consequently  there  must  be  a  corresponding  energetic  movement  to 
effect  the  purpose.  The  foot  has  been  placed  on  the  ground,  nearly 
on  a  line  with  the  nose,  and  the  other  foreleg  does  its  part  by  carrying 
the  weight  along  until  it  is  under  the  brisket.  When  so  far  back 
that  a  vertical  line  from  the  toe  will  strike  behind  the  cantle  of  the 
saddle,  the  grand  propulsive  force  is  applied.  As  the  body  is  carried 
over  the  foot,  the  pastern  is  bent  until  the  ankle  touches  the  ground, 
and  at  this  point  the  injury  from  the  high  heel  or  the  long  shoe 
comes.  It  is  evident  that  the  tendon  which  passes  under  the  navic- 
ular bone  is  forced  to  a  sharper  angle,  and  when  the  contraction  of 
the  muscles  act  on  the  cords,  a  greater  resistance  is  met.  By  looking 
at  the  cut,  and  imagining  the  slight  angle  which  the  bones  form  with 
the  gi-ound  sui-face  changed  to  one  which  is  below  a  parallel  line, 
some  idea  may  be  formed  of  the  increased  resistance  to  be  overcome. 
When  the  tendon  passes  over  a  joint,  it  has  a  groove  to  run  in,  this 
being  lubricated  by  a  mucilaginous  liquid  called  the  synovial  fluid,  in 
common  parlance  joint-oil. 

Should  the  cord  be  pressed  with  a  greater  degree  of  force  than  is 
necessary,  it  is  like  applying  a  brake  to  a  wheel,  the  high  heel  being 


AN    EFFECTIVE    FRICTION-BBEAK.  77 

as  effective  in  performing  this  as  the  Westinghouse  on  a  raih'oad 
train. 

Short  bulky  muscles  can  exert  a  more  potent  contractile  force  than 
those  which  are  longer,  but  the  thinner  and  elongated  fibres  can  ac- 
complish more  extensive  movements.  This  is  the  difference  between 
the  part  bred  quarter-horse  and  the  thoroughbred.  The  former  goes 
into  his  stride  at  once,  the  quick  action  of  the  bunched  up  muscles 
in  arm  and  gaskin  quickening  the  action,  while  the  longer  leap  is 
deliberate,  and  the  animal  is  scarcely  well  settled  in  his  stride  when 
the  other  is  exhausted. 

There  has  been  a  great  deal  of  controversy  over  the  question  of 
the  greater  frequency  of  break-downs  in  the  long  distance  runner  in 
comparison  with  the  short  horse.  Both  are  shod  similarly,  and  the 
immunity  of  the  latter  would  appear  to  be  a  strong  argument  against 
the  claim  that  the  elevation  of  the  heel  is  detrimental.  This  does 
not  follow. 

The  quarter-horse  has  little  work  in  proportion,  and  his  races  are 
not  so  violent  a  strain.  He  runs  on  a  hard  track,  and  this  is  addi- 
tional proof  that  it  is  the  effort  to  rise  which  injures  the  tendons. 
The  deeper  the  sinking  of  the  feet  the  more  violent  will  be  the 
muscular  contractions,  and  the  greater  strain  on  the  cords  which 
convey  the  power. 

Veterinary  writei-s  agree  that  one  of  the  surest  symptoms  of  navic- 
ular diseases  is  the  "  pointing  "  of  the  afflicted  foot.  If  one  only  is 
diseased,  it  will  be  constantly  thrust  forward  ;  if  both,  there  will  be 
a  change  every  few  minutes  from  the  intolerable  pain  when  the  foot  is 
under  the  body.  This  does  not  arise  so  much  from  the  weight  as  from 
the  position.  The  further  forward  the  foot  is  placed,  the  more  resem- 
blance there  is  to  the  low  heel,  and  the  similar  posture  afibrds  relief. 
Cases  of  navicular  disease  are  extremely  rare,  excepting  where  the 
heels  are  high,  and  those  we  have  seen  are  almost  invariably  marked 
by  severe  contraction.  A  natural  foot,  one  entirely  free  from  disease, 
and  which  has  never  been  shod,  presents  at  the  heel  a  very  difierent 
appearance.  The  base  line  is  formed  by  two  curvatures  of  the  inner 
and  outer  quarters,  and  these  are  joined  by  a  reverse  curve  repre- 
senting the  posterior  part  of  the  frog.     If  the  animal  be  permitted 


78  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

to  run  at  large,  or  is  worked  without  shoes,  there  will  be  no  change. 
In  a  previous  paper  something  of  the  same  ground  was  covered, 
though  the  long  periods  intervening,  awaiting  the  result  of  experi- 
ments, has  compelled  reiterations.  This  desultory  method  of  treat- 
ing the  subject  has  not  been  without  advantages.  Every  point  has 
been  covered  by  practice,  so  far  as  it  has  been  practicable  to  make 
the  test.  The  few  horses  which  we  have  had  in  the  last  two  years 
has  extended  the  application,  and  left  things  which  might  have  been 
proven,  partly  conjectural.  To  establish  the  theory  that  there  is  far 
less  risk  of  breaking  down  from  the  feet  being  unhampered,  would 
require  more  actual  results  than  we  now  possess,  and  though  firm  in 
the  belief  that  such  will  be  ultimately  proven,  there  is  not  sufficient 
data  to  state  it  authoritatively. 

As  many  of  the  Eastern  trainers  of  race  horses  have  discarded 
shoes,  a  compaiison  could  be  instituted  there,  and  here  there  is  one 
instance.  The  horses  in  the  Santa  Anita  stable  have  been  trained 
barefooted,  and  with  the  exception  of  Clara  D.,  who  had  shoes  put 
on  to  make  a  long  railroad  trip,  the  only  incumbrance  has  been  the 
racing  plates.  There  were  less  casualties  among  them  than  in  any 
stable  on  the  coast,  and  they  certainly  did  their  share  of  work.  Mr. 
Martin  informs  me  that  he  is  so  well  convinced  that  it  is  preferable 
that  he  will  continue  the  practice.  Clara  D.  was  shod  without  his 
knowledge,  and  it  is  not  likely  such  a  course  will  be  pursued  again 
after  the  way  he  emphasized  his  disapprobation. 

The  Australians  have  forsaken  shoes,  and  the  late  William  Dow- 
ling  informed  me  that  they  had  found  it  to  be  far  prefei'able  to  the 
old  method.  When  in  races  they  are  plated  in  order  to  give  them  a 
"  hold  "  from  which  to  spring,  and  as  the  courses  there  are  coated 
with  grass,  there  may  be  a  necessity  for  a  catch.  The  tip,  however, 
would  afford  this  just  as  effectually  as  the  full  plate,  without  the 
danger  of  twisting  from  the  heel. 


CHAPTER  IX. 

Guards  Against   Concussion. 


In  all  animals  wliicli  have  to  progress  witli  any  degree  of  celerity 
on  pedal  extremities,  nature  has  provided  guards  against  the  injuri- 
ous effects  of  concussion.  In  considering  the  proper  manner  of 
keeping  effective  the  natural  pi-ovision  in  the  foot  of  the  horse,  a 
brief  comparison  with  other  quadrupeds  ^vill  not  be  out  of  place. 
In  all  are  contrivances,  admirable  and  complete,  in  a  state  of  nat\ire, 
for  the  intended  uses,  and  valuable  lessons  will  reward  the  investiga- 
tor in  this  department  of  animal  economy.  In  former  papers  I  have 
alluded  to  the  foot  of  the  greyhound,  and  now  the  antitheton  of  that 
fleet  courser  will  come  under  review.  There  could  scarcely  be  two 
animals  selected  which  are  more  dissimilar  than  the  gi-eyhound  and 
elephant — the  former  a  type  of  grace,  agility,  lightness,  the  other 
massive  in  its  hugeness — so  ponderous  as  to  awaken  a  feeling  of  awe 
in  a  person  who  has  not  been  accustomed  to  seeing  them. 

The  skeleton  of  the  greyhound  diffei-s  from  that  of  the  horse,  in 
there  being  a  sharper  angle  between  the  shoulder-blade  (scapula)  and 
the  bone  of  the  ui)per  arm  (humerus).  From  the  elbow  to  the  knee 
is  far  longer  in  proportion  in  the  dog,  and  the  cannon,  or  metacar- 
pals, correspondingly  shorter.  In  place  of  the  lower  pastern  shuttle 
or  navicular  bone,  and  the  coffin  bone,  the  dog  has  digits  similar  to 
those  of  the  human  hand,  and  these  are  in  nearly  a  horizontal  posi- 
tion. The  spring-  of  these  digits,  and  the  cushion  of  the  sole,  to- 
gether with  the  angle  of  the  scapula  and  humerus,  are  effective  guards 


80  TIPS    AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

against  tlie  jar  which  follows  the  striking  the  earth  after  the  bound. 
I  do  not  intend  to  go  into  an  analysis  of  the  stride  and  action  of  the 
greyhound  until  I  have  studied  the  last  series  of  photographs  taken 
at  Palo  Alto.  That  it  will  vary  from  that  of  the  hoi'se,  I  feel  confi- 
dent from  the  configuration  being  so  difl'ereut ;  but  without  that 
light  there  would  be  just  as  much  liability  to  error  as  thei^e  has  been 
in  regard  to  the  action  of  the  horse  in  a  fast  gallop.  More  so,  as 
there  is  fully  as  much  speed,  with  quicker  movements,  so  that  the 
brain  is  still  more  troubled  to  retain  the  picture  which  is  yet  niore 
transitory.  For  the  following  account  of  the  elephant  we  are  in- 
debted to  the  Asian,  a  newspaper  published  in  Calcutta,  India,  and 
as  a  chronicle  of  "  sport,  shikar,  the  turf,  garden,  tea,  indigo,  whist, 
chess,  etc.,"  full  of  interesting  matter.  Published  in  a  country  where 
the  elephant  is  utilized,  dependence  can  be  placed  on  its  accuracy, 
particularly  as  the  author,  R.  A.  Sterndale,  F.  R.  G.  S.,  has  been  a 
resident  of  India  long  enough  to  give  him  an  intimate  knowledge  of 
the  subject.  As  it  is  only  a  small  portion  of  the  essay  which  we 
have  pirated,  and  bearing  as  it  does  so  intimately  on  the  topic  under 
consideration;  and  then,  again,  being  so  for  away,  the  acknowledged 
capture  may  be  pardoned  : 

The  elephant  has  seven  cerAncal  vertebrae,  the  atlas  much  resembling  the 
human  form  ;  of  the  thoracic  and  lumbar  vertebroe  the  number  is  twenty- 
three,  of  which  nineteen  or  twenty  bear  ribs  ;  the  caudal  vertebrae  are  thirty 
one,  of  a  simple  character,  without  chevron  bones. 

The  pelvis  is  peculiar  in  some  points,  such  as  the  form  of  the  ileum,  and 
the  arrangement  of  its  surfaces  resembling  the  human  pelvis. 

The  limbs  in  the  skeleton  of  the  elephant  are  disposed  in  a  manner  differ- 
ing from  most  other  mammalia.  The  humerus  is  remarkable  for  the  greal; 
development  of  the  supinator  ridge.  ' '  The  ulna  and  radius  are  quite  distinct 
and  permanently  crossed  ;  the  upper  end  of  the  latter  is  small,  while  the  ulna 
not  only  contributes  the  principal  part  of  the  articular  surface  for  the  humerus, 
but  has  its  lower  end  actually  larger  than  that  of  the  radius — a  condition  al- 
most unique  among  mammals." — (Prof.  Floiver.) 

On  looking  at  the  skeleton  of  the  elephant,  one  of  the  first  things  that 
strike  the  student  of  comparative  anatomy  is  the  perpendicular  column  of  the 
limbs  ;  in  all  other  animals  the  bones  composing  these  supports  are  set  at  cer- 
tain angles,  by  which  a  direct  shock,  in  the  action  of  galloping  and  leaping,  is 
avoided.  Take  the  skeleton  of  a  horse,  and  you  will  observe  that  the  scapula 
and  humerus  are  set  almost  at  right-angles  with  each  other.     It  is  so  in  most 


FOOT    OF   THE    ELEPHANT.  81 

other  animals  ;  but,  in  tlie  elephant,  which  requires  greater  solidity  and  col- 
umnar strength,  it  not  being  given  to  bounding  about,  and  having  enormous 
bulk  to  be  supported,  the  scapula,  humerus,  ulna  and  radius  are  almost  in  a 
perpendicular  line.  Owing  to  this  rigid  foi-mation  the  elephant  cannot  spring. 
No  greater  hoax  was  ever  jjerpetrated  on  the  pujjlic  than  that  in  one  of  our 
illustrated  papers,  wliich  gave  a  picture  of  an  elephant  hurdle-race.  Mr.  San- 
derson, in  his  most  interesting  book,  says:  "  He  is  physically  incapable  of 
making  the  smallest  spring,  either  in  vertical  height  or  horizontal  distance. 
Thus  a  trench  seven  feet  wide  is  impassable  to  an  elephant,  though  the  step  of 
a  large  one,  in  full  stride,  is  about  six  and  a  half  feet." 

The  hind  limbs  are  also  peculiarly  formed,  and  bear  some  resemblance  to 
the  arrangement  of  the  human  bones,  and  in  these  the  same  perpendicular  dis- 
position is  to  be  observed  ;  the  pelvis  is  set  nearly  vertically  to  the  vertebral 
column,  and  the  femur  and  tibia  are  in  almost  a  direct  line.  The  fibula,  or 
small  bone  of  the  leg,  which  is  subject  to  great  variation  amongst  animals  (it 
being  merely  rudimentary  in  the  horse,  for  instance),  is  distinct  in  the  elejjhant 
and  is  considerably  enlarged  at  the  lower  end.  The  tarsal  bones  are  short 
and  the  digits  have  the  usual  number  of  phalanges,  the  ungual,  or  nail-bearing 
one,  being^small  and  rounded. 

Another  thing  that  strikes  every  one  is  the  noiseless  tread  of  this  huge 
beast.  To  describe  the  mechanism  of  the  foot  of  the  elephant  concisely  and 
simply,  I  am  going  to  give  a  few  extracts  from  the  observations  of  Professor 
W.  Boyd  Dawkins  and  Messrs.  Oakley,  Miall  and  Greenwood:  "It  stands 
on  the  ends  of  its  five  toes,  each  of  which  is  terminated  by  comparatively 
small  hoofs,  and  the  heel  bone  is  a  little  distance  from  the  ground.  Beneath 
comes  the  wonderful  cushion  composed  of  membranes,  fat,  nerves  and  blood- 
vessels, besides  muscles,  which  constitutes  the  sole  of  the  foot." — (  W.  B.  D., 
and  H.  0. ) — of  the  foot  as  a  whole,  and  this  remark  applies  to  both  fore  and 
hind  extremities  ;  the  separate  mobility  of  the  parts  is  greater  than  would  be 
suspected  from  an  external  inspection,  and  much  greater  than  in  most  ungu- 
lates. The  palmar  and  plantar  soles,  though  thick  and  tough,  are  not  rigid 
boxes  like  hoofs,  but  may  be  made  to  bend,  even  by  human  fingers.  The 
large  development  of  muscles  acting  upon  the  carpus  and  tarsus,  and  the  sepa- 
rate existence  of  flexors  and  extensors  of  individual  digits,  is  further  proof 
that  the  elephant's  foot  is  far  from  being  a  solid,  unalterable  mass.  Tiiere 
are,  as  has  been  pointed  out,  tendinous  or  ligamentous  attachments,  which 
restrain  the  independent  action  of  some  of  these  muscles,  but  anatomical  ex- 
aminations would  lead  us  to  suppose  that  the  living  animal  could  at  all  events 
accurately  direct  any  part  of  the  circumference  of  the  foot  by  itself  on  the 
ground.  The  metacarpal  and  metatarsal  bones  form  a  considerable  angle  mth 
the  surface  of  the  sole,  while  the  digits,  when  supporting  the  weight  of  the 
body,  are  nearly  horizontal.— (J/",  and  G^.)— This  formation  would  naturally 


82  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

give  elasticity  to  the  foot,  and,  with  the  soft  cushion  spoken  of  by  Professor 
Dawkins,  would  account  for  the  noiselessness  of  the  elephant's  tread. 

On  one  occasion,  a  friend  and  myself  marched  our  elephants  up  to  a  sleep- 
ing tiger  without  disturbing  the  latter's  slumbers. 

It  is  a  curious  fact  that  twice  around  an  elephant's  foot  is  his  height  ;  it 
may  be  an  inch  one  way  or  the  other,  but  still  sutEciently  near  to  make  an 
estimate. 

It  is  evident  that  there  must  be  provided  something  more  than  is 
found  in  the  foot  of  the  dog  and  the  horse  to  counteract  the  force  of 
the  immense  weight  sustained  by  the  massive  peiijendicuhxr  columns. 
The  cushion,  composed  of  the  tissues  the  best  adapted  to  give  soft- 
ness and  elasticity,  is  spread  out  to  an  immense  size  to  increase  its 
effectiveness.  "  Twice  round  "  the  foot  of  a  horse  would  lack  several 
inches  of  reaching  the  elbow,  and  in  a  majority  of  thoroughbreds  the 
proportion  would  be  nearly  as  one  to  five  in  measuring  the  height.  It  is 
also  evident  that  the  smaller  foot  is  one  of  the  elements  of  speed,  and 
to  prove  this  it  is  only  necessary  to  compare  that  of  the  di-aft  horse 
with  the  pedals  of  the  racer.  The  foot  of  the  dog  is  much  larger  in 
comparison  with  the  size,  especially  the  weight,  and  hence  a  softer 
cushion  is  admissable.  To  withstand  the  increased  attrition,  the 
material  must  be  hardei*,  and  in  lieu  of  the  indurated  sole  of  the  foot 
of  the  dog  there  is  the  still  firmer  frog.  But,  as  has  been  partially 
explained  heretofore,  the  frog  is  a  reinforcement,  aiding  the  parts 
which  have  stood  the  hardest  shock  of  the  battle.  The  first  charge 
has  been  met  with  the  wall,  and  the  forcing  the  wall  apart,  made 
possible  by  the  commissures,  gives  the  frog  the  opportunity  to  play  its 
part.  It  is  astonishing  that  this  should  be  so  persistently  ignored, 
when  all  but  one  crazy  theorist,  and  perhaps  a  few  of  his  disciples, 
admit  the  importance  of  allowing  the  frog  to  perform  the  part  Nature 
intended. 

A  general  who  would  shut  up  his  reserves  in  a  space  where  there 
could  not  be  a  chance  for  the  least  exercise,  who  left  them  there  until 
the  muscles  were  wasted  away  and  the  nervous  force  entirely  lost,  who 
went  into  an  engagement  in  which  he  was  defeated  entirely  from 
neglecting  this  important  part  of  his  command,  offers  a  parallel  to 
those  who  still  cling  to  the  old-time  absurdities.  Ignoring  the  func- 
tions of  the  frog  is  not  the  only  injury  which  follows  the  common 


RATIONAL    OX- SHOEING.  83 

system  of  shoeing.  The  spreading  of  the  heel  is  stopped,  and  both 
of  tlie  pedal  guards  against  concussion  are  nullified.  That  the  spring 
which  is  afforded  by  the  spreading  of  the  "quarters"  is  of  vast  .im- 
portance I  am  well  satisfied,  and  also  that  it  is  nearly,  if  not  quite,  as 
serviceable  in  keeping  the  foot  sound  as  anything  in  the  mechanism 
of  the  foot,  and  all  the  contrivances  to  palliate  the  evils  of  a  full  shoe 
are  nearly  worthless. 

Where  the  writer  lived  when  a  boy,  oxen  did  the  largest  proportion 
of  the  work  of  the  farm.  It  was  a  hilly  country,  heavily  timbered, 
rocky  in  inany  places,  and  all  the  soil  was  nearly  covered  with  stones. 
In  the  winter  time,  shoes  with  sharp  calkins  were  a  necessity  to  keep 
the  animal  from  falling  down  on  the  ice-covered  roads.  Those  which 
were  used  much  in  the  roads  in  the  summer  needed  a  guard  to  protect 
the  thin  horn.  Thei-e  were  two  shoes  on  each  foot,  the  toe  portion 
being  wide,  the  heel  narrowed  to  a  width  of  scarcely  half  an  inch. 
They  were  fastened  with  very  small  nails,  and  the  shoer  of  the  ox 
certainly  exhibited  far  more  sense  than  he  did  when  the  horse  was 
the  subject.  To  have  followed  the  plan  pursued  with  the  latter,  he 
should  have  made  one  in  place  of  two  shoes  for  each  foot,  and  in  lieu 
of  the  narrow,  thin  heel,  put  iron  enough  in  it  to  raise  the  pad  so  it 
could  never  touch  the  ground.  He  could  see  the  importance  of  not 
interfering  with  the  cleft  in  the  toe;  the  fissures  in  the  heel  of  the 
horse  were  completely  overlooked,  and  the  palpable  object  entirely 
unheeded.  By  putting  a  round  shoe  on  the  cloven  foot  of  the  ox, 
securely  nailing  it  so  as  to  completely  bind  both  portions  together, 
there  would  be  a  proper  analogy  in  the  systems,  and  the  ox  crippled, 
as  well  as  his  co-laborer. 

I  do  not  hesitate  to  ascribe  a  majority  of  the  ailments  to  the 
effect  of  a  wrong  system  of  shoeing ;  but  it  is  sufiicient,  perhaps,  to 
consider  the  direct  injuries.  Contraction,  corns,  quarter-cracks, 
bruises  affecting  the  sensitive  portions  of  the  foot,  ossified  cartil- 
ages, navicularthritis,  thrush,  atrophy  of  the  frog,  etc.  In  the  first 
year  I  spent  in  California  I  saw  more  corns  and  quarter-cracks  than 
had  come  under  my  observation  in  many  years  previous — in  fact, 
there  were  more  horses  troubled  with  cracking  of  the  hoof  than, 
taking  them  all  together,  I  had  noticed  in  my  experience  before. 


84  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

The  first  gallop  of  a  mile  I  gave  two  of  my  horses,  on  the  Oakland 
course,  resulted  in  injuries  which  incapacitated  one  entirely;  the  other 
ran  raany  races,  but  with  his  feet  so  shattered  that  his  capacity  was 
so  much  curtailed  that  he  could  only  display  a  small  portion  of  his 
real  powers.  The  first  was  a  three-year-old  filly,  and  in  a  match  at 
Chicago,  when  a  year  younger,  she  easily  defeated  a  sister  to  Ella 
Rowett,  and  would,  doubtless,  have  made  a  fine  race  mare.  The 
other  was  Hock-Hocking.  The  filly  broke  oS"  a  wing  of  the  coffin 
bone  from  the  concussion,  consequent  on  the  jar  of  the  hard  track 
and  still  harder  shoe,  and  the  splitting  of  the  fibres  of  the  horn  was 
due  to  the  same  cause.  As  has  been  described  and  illusti'ated  in  a 
previous  chapter,  I  invented  and  tested  a  shoe  which  was  something 
of  a  safeguard,  viz  :  Two  plates  with  a  stratum  of  rubber  between. 
This  was  a  step  in  the  right  direction,  and  while  laboring  to  make  it 
still  more  efiective,  by  increasing  the  width  of  the  heel,  covering  the 
whole  space  between  the  frog  and  the  outside  of  the  wall,  so  as  to 
use  more  of  the  elastic  substance  where  the  whole  of  the  concussion 
came,  it  struck  me  that  there  was  a  natural  safeguard  which  would 
do  away  with  the  necessity  of  artificial  appliances. 

This  safeguard  is  the  highly  elastic  frog,  when  in  a  natural  state, 
the  spring  which  the  commissures  permit,  and  the  dilatation  and  con- 
traction in  the  coronary  region.  Taking  the  hoof  of  a  colt  which 
had  never  been  shod,  between  my  knees,  gi-asping  the  wall  with  my 
fingers,  and  the  thumbs  pressing  on  the  posterior  part  of  the  bars,  I 
found  that  it  yielded  readily,  and  the  amount  of  motion  thei*e 
was.  Contrasting  this  with  the  shod  foot,  the  difterence  was  so  great 
that  I  thought  it  must  arise  from  some  peculiarity  in  the  individual, 
and  that  the  colt  had  a  more  pliant  wall  than  usual,  but  repeated  ex- 
periments on  vai-ious  animals  convinced  me  that  this  was  one  of  the 
wise  provisions  to  guard  against  injuiy  which  nature  gives,  and  for 
remedying  the  disadvantages  of  the  one  toe  in  the  modern  cahallus 
was  an  admirable  contrivance.  All  other  animals,  with  the  excep- 
tion of  the  hoi'se,  £(,ss,  zebra,  quagga,  etc.,  have  divided  hoofs,  or 
padded  heels,  like  the  camel,  or  curved  toes  like  the  greyhound,  and 
the  guards  against  concussion  when  in  rapid  progression  are  ample. 
The  rigid  bar  of  ii'on  not  only  fetters  the  motion  which  the  commis- 


ERRONEOUS    SETTING    OF    TIPS.  85 

sures  permit,  but  it  elevates  the  frog  so  as  to  deprive  it  of  the  ad- 
vantages of  ilse,  and  restrains  the  elasticity  of  the  upper  portion  of 
the  wall. 

After  duly  considering  these  facts,  I  felt  that  my  elastic  shoe  was 
unnecessary,  and  though  I  had  spent  a  gi'eat  deal  of  time  in  making 
patterns,  and  had  a  model  finished  with,  the  intention  of  taking  out 
a  patent,  I  became  satisfied  that  there  was  a  simple  plan  far  more 
effectual.  This  was  the  use  of  tips,  or  rather  a  shoe  which  was  cut 
off  a  little  back  of  whei-e  the  second  nail  from  the  toe  usually  comes. 
True,  these  were  old  appliances,  and  it  appeai*ed  as  though,  if  they 
possessed  merit,  they  would  be  in  more  general  use.  Then  it  struck 
me  that,  while  the  principle  was  correct,  the  application  was  errone- 
ous. The  custom  was  to  prepare  the  foot  the  same  as  if  a  full  shoe 
was  to  be  put  on,  and  the  tip  was  "  feathered,"  running  in  a  wedge 
shape  from  the  toe  to  where  it  ended.  The  bars  and  heels  were  cut 
away  so  that  the  toe  was  tilted  upwards,  resulting  in  an  undue  strain 
on  the  tendons,  while  the  weakened  bar  and  thinned  sole  were  un- 
protected. I  make  the  tip  of  nearly  a  uniform  thickness,  a  majority 
of  them  having  a  quarter  of  an  inch  of  metal  which  was  filed  square. 
A  shoulder  was  cut  in  the  wall,  and  so  much  of  the  sole  as  the  width 
of  the  web  required,  and  all  back  of  the  shoulder,  was  left  full  and 
rounded  with  a  file  to  protect  the  edge.  Horses  that  were  exercised 
on  the  track  would  grow  more  horn  than  was  worn  away,  and  the 
superfluous  growth  was  removed  when  the  tips  were  reset.  The  re- 
sult of  some  of  these  experiments  since  the  adoption  of  this  system. 
will  be  found  in  preceding  chapters.  The  first  was  printed  nearly 
four  years  ago  (April,  1876),  and  the  breaks  were  occasioned  by 
waiting  for  the  confirmation  of  the  theory  by  the  test  of  actual  prac- 
tice, or  the  discovery  of  defects  which  would  interdict  its  adoption. 

For  the  last  year  I  have  only  had  X  X  (double-cross)  to  test  the 
matter  fully,  though  there  have  been  incidental  illustrations  which  I 
have  learned  something  from.  One  of  these  was  Three  Cheers.  This 
horse  also  went  wrong  the  first  summer  I  was  in  California,  having 
a  "  bowed  tendon,"  which  I  think  resulted  from  disease  in  the  foot. 
He  was  of  so  much  promise  when  a  two-year-old  that  I  was  ex- 
tremely anxious  to  run  him,  were  it  only  in  one  race,  being  confident 


86  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS, 

that  lie  was  an  A  No.  1  race-horse  at  any  distance.  The  spring  of 
1878  I  galloped  him  in  tips,  and  he  went  along  finely  for  such  a  length 
of  time  that  I  had  great  hopes  of  him  "  getting  to  a  race."  During 
the  winter  he  had  been  worked  on  the  road,  with  strong  exei-cise  up 
the  slope  from  West  Berkeley  to  near  the  University.  When  the 
track  was  dry  enough,  he  was  galloped  on  it,  taking  his  work  well, 
and  moving  through  the  stretches  fast.  Showing  a  trifle  lame  after 
his  last  run  in  April,  I  concluded  to  let  him  rest  until  another  year, 
though  there  was  very  little  tenderness  or  heat  in  the  ailing  leg.  He 
had  been  in  exercise  from  January  until  April.  Thinking  there 
might  be  some  logic  in  the  idea  that  when  there  was  an  injury  in  the 
back-tendon,  raising  the  heel  was  beneficial,  1  concluded  to  try  it  on 
Three  Cheers,  and  had  him  shod  with  a  full  shoe,  with  the  heels  a 
good  deal  thicker  than  the  toe,  in  the  spring  of  1879.  The  second 
time  he  was  galloped  at  any  rate  of  speed,  he  pulled  up  quite  lame, 
and  the  tendon  wtxs  greatly  enlarged.  Had  the  gallop  been  severe, 
he  would  have  broken  down,  and  he  did  not  have  one-tenth  of  the 
work  he  accomplished  safely  in  the  tips.  This  satisfied  me  that  the 
elevation  of  the  heel  was  wrong,  and  in  place  of  relief  brought  a 
greater  stmin  on  the  tendons.  I  was  led  to  try  the  shoes  on  him  by 
the  statement  of  a  man  who  was  anxious  to  train  him,  and  he  was 
so  sure  of  the  success  of  a  peculiar  application  to  his  legs  he  pos- 
sessed, that  he  made  the  proposition  to  do  the  training  for  a  certain 
proportion  of  his  winnings. 

He  took  him  to  Pleasanton,  bringing  him  home,  according  to  his 
statement,  on  account  of  suits  being  brought  against  him  for  feed 
and  board.  He  told  me  that  he  had  given  him  two  runs  of  half 
miles  and  repeat,  when  he  made  the  distance  easily  in  fifty  seconds. 
His  legs  were  in  good  shape,  and  as  he  had  *him  shod  with  the  full 
shoe,  I  reasoned  that  if  he  had  taken  the  work  which  was  claimed, 
there  was  a  strong  presumption  of  the  eflicacy  of  the  shoe  in  such 
cases,  corroborating  the  principle  of  elevating  the  heel.  I  became 
satisfied,  however,  that  the  claim  was  not  correct,  and  that  the  horse 
remained  idle  during  the  period  he  had  him. 

In  previous  papers  I  have  alluded   to   the   instantaneous  photo- 
graphs of  Muybridge,  which  give  an  accurate  representation  of  the 


STRIDE    OF   THE    RACE-HORSE.  87 

action  in  tlie  fast  gallop,  and  from  these  I  am  satisfied  that  the  cause 
of  injury  to  the  tendons  is  the  immense  strain  on  the  forelegs  conse- 
quent on  the  body  being  carried  for  such  a  long  distance  while  sup- 
ported by  only  one  leg.  The  forefoot  comes  to  the  ground  at  its 
furthest  extension,  and  immediately  after  the  other  three  are  ele- 
vated, so  that  the  whole  of  the  weight  of  horse  and  rider  is  thrown 
on  this  leg.  When  it  sustains  the  weight  directly  over  it,  then  the 
pastern  is  so  much  bent  that  the  fetlock  touches  the  ground.  With 
a  high  heel  it  is  evident  that  the  pastem  must  have  a  more  acute 
angle,  and  the  foot  strikes  the  ground  in  an  unnatural  position. 
There  must  be  such  an  immense  strain  when  the  leg,  unaided,  has  to 
sustain  the  weight  of  the  horse  and  the  rider,  and  when  added  to 
these  the  velocity  with  which  the  animal  moves,  a  very  little  addi- 
tional cause  may  be  the  means  of  sevei-e  injury.  A  wrong  placing 
of  the  foot,  so  that  the  other  strikes  it  when  passing,  especially 
on  the  turn  of  the  track,  and  surely  a  hampering  of  the  natui-al 
motion  of  the  horn,  and  the  abrogation  of  the  elasticity  of  the  frog, 
may  be  a  potent  aiixilliary  in  the  breaking  down  of  race-horses. 
Fortunately,  after  the  body  is  hurled  through  the  air,  the  first  con- 
tact with  the  ground  is  made  with  one  of  the  hind  feet,  then  the 
other  touches,  in  a  twenty-two  feet  stride,  thirty-eight  inches  in  ad- 
vance, both  of  these  being  on  the  ground  at  the  same  time.  The  first 
fore-foot  to  strike  is  ninety  inches  further  along  than  where  the 
second  hind  foot  was  placed,  and  the  second  fore  foot  fifty-two  inches 
in  the  lead  of  the  other.  The  stride  of  a  race-horse,  viz. :  from  where 
one  of  the  fore  feet  left  the  ground  until  it  strikes  again — has  a  dif- 
ferent movement  of  the  legs  all  through.  In  the  square  trotter,  such 
as  Occident  and  Abe  Edginton,  there  are  identical  movements  twice 
in  the  same  stride.  The  off  hind  foot  and  the  near  front  one  touch 
the  ground  nearly  together,  probably  the  hind  foot  a  little  the  quick- 
est, and  that  does  not  leave  the  ground  until  after  the  foi'e  foot  is 
elevated  a  few  inches.  Thus  there  are  two  times  during  the  stride 
of  the  trotter  when  the  body  is  unsuppoi'ted,  and  once  in  the  race- 
horse, the  latter  being  in  the  air  the  ninety  inches  which  marks  the 
length  of  the  bound.  The  fore  and  hind  foot  both  sustain  the  trotter, 
excepting  when  the  former  is  raised  just  previous  to  the  last  efibrt  of 
he  hind  leg  to  send  the  body  along. 


CHAPTER  X. 

Growth  of  the  Horn — Protection  to  the  Foot. 


The  ill  effects  of  rendering  nugatory  the  natural  guards  against 
concussion  are  so  palpable  that  it  appears  like  a  waste  of  space  to  re- 
iterate the  pixjof  of  the  injuries  that  are  sure  to  follow.  But  who- 
ever will  take  time  enough  to  become  acquainted  with  the  mechanism 
of  the  foot,  and  will  give  the  subject  some  attention,  can  scarcely 
fail  to  see  the  importance  of  retaining  the  elasticity  intact.  Not 
merely  that  of  the  frog,  as  the  spring  which  follows  giving  the  quar- 
ters full  play  is  an  aid  which  cannot  be  dispensed  with  without  se- 
rious injury.  There  is  another  thing  in  connection  with  the  topic 
which  is  worthy  of  consideration,  and  that  is  the  gi-owth  of  horn. 
That  this  is  much  slower  in  the  foot  which  has  been  shod,  we  have 
abundant  proof,  and  it  does  not  require  examinations  extending  over 
a  long  period  to  become  satisfied.  Though  the  hom  is  deposited  by 
ducts  in  the  coronary  band,  their  activity  is  stimulated  by  the  natu- 
ral functions  being  preserved.  In  this  there  is  a  similarity  to  the 
waste  and  reproduction  of  the  muscles.  Muscular  effort  brings  a 
waste  of  the  tissues,  but  the  action  that  destroys  also  stimidates 
the  organs  which  deposit  the  material,  and  the  I'epair  is  accelerated 
so  that  there  is  an  absolute  increase  of  the  motive  power.  Though 
the  loss  is  greater,  there  is  an  exti-a  compensation — a  return  of  the 
capital  with  interest.  There  must  be  a  judicious  exercise  of  the  mus- 
cles or  there  will  be  a  diminution  in  the  bulk,  and  a  shrinkage  which 
the  blood  has  not  the  power  to  replace.     In  the  foot  there  may  be  so 


ill  1 


ELASTICITY   OF   NATURAL   HORN.  89 

much  wear  that  the  increased  activity  of  the  horn-forming  vessels 
cannot  make  up  the  deficiency.  Now,  as  has  been  demonsti-ated  in 
previous  articles,  the  foot  entirely  unprotected  (under  certain  condi- 
tions) may  wear  away  so  much  at  the  toe  as  to. cause  serious  lame- 
ness. Even  this  is  not  so  likely  to  be  the  case  as  many  imagine,  and 
in  many  experiments  I  have  found  that  an  unshod  foot  Avill  stand  far 
more  attrition  than  was  supjiosed  to  be  possible.  But  to  give  the 
foot  a  fair  chance,  it  must  be  in  a  sound  condition  to  start  with.  If 
it  has  been  rendered  weak  by  a  non-use  of  the  parts  which  nature 
intended  to  do  a  share  of  the  work,  it  will  not  stand  the  test  ixnder 
the  most  favorable  circumstances. 

The  hoi-se  which  has  worn  shoes  for  any  length  of  time  will  soon 
go  lame  when  without  their  protection.  The  smith  has  destroyed 
the  capacity  for  resistance,  and  there  must  be  a  continuance  of  the 
system  that  has  destroyed,  or  opportunity  to  recover  from  the  treat- 
ment. The  growth  of  the  hora  has  not  only  been  curtailed,  but  that 
which  is  de}x>sited  is  of  an  inferior  character.  It  may  appear  para- 
doxical to  state  that  as  the  horn  becomes  harder  it  is  more  rapidly 
worn  away  by  the  attrition  of  the  i-oads.  It  will  be  undei-stood, 
however,  when  a  comparison  is  made  between  the  horn  from  an  un- 
shod foot  and  that  which  has  worn  iron  for  a  length  of  time.  The 
former  cuts  more  easily  when  the  tool  used  is  a  sharp  knife,  but  a 
rasp  has  less  effect.  One  is  an  elastic,  live  material,  pliable  as  a 
piece  of  whalebone  ;  the  other  a  brittle  substance,  almost  as  destitute 
of  toughness  as  the  horn  fi-om  a  dead  animal.  IVIr.  Douglas,  an 
English  Avi-iter,  states :  "If  the  crust  is  closely  examined  with  a 
microscope,  its  structure  will  be  found  to  consist  of  a  number  of 
bristle^like  fibers  standing  on  end,  but  leaning  diagonally  towards 
the  ground.  Fi-om  the  particular  longitudinal  construction  of  the 
fibers,  it  follows  that  they  will  bear  a  great  amount  of  weight  so  long 
as  they  are  kept  in  a  natural  state.  The  cinist  so  viewed  resembles 
a  number  of  small  tubes,  bound  together  by  a  hardened,  glue-like 
substance." 

"  Whoever  has  seen  a  Mitrailleuse  gun,  with  its  numerous  ban-els 
all  soldered  together,  can  form  a  very  good  idea  of  the  peculiar  stiiic- 
ture  of  the  cinist  (or  wall),  especially  if  they  were  likewise  to  imagine 


90  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

the  tubes  filled  with  a  thick  fluid,  the  use  of  which  is  to  nourish  and 
preserve  them."  Before  microscopic  observations  revealed  the  exist- 
ence of  these  minute  tubes,  it  was  thought  that  the  horn  lay  in  layers 
like  the  leaves  of  a  book,  and  the  tubes  are  so  arranged  as  to  form 
these  thin  strata.  The  layers  are  readily  separated,  and  it  does  not 
I'equire  a  long  soaking  to  make  the  division.  The  agglutination  is 
moi'e  rigid  between  the  tubes  at  right  angles  to  the  layers,  and 
consequently  a  great  force  is  necessary  to  rend  them  asunder.  But 
if  the  tubes  are  hardened  from  dryness,  the  diameter  must  be  de- 
creased, and  there  cannot  be  a  full  supply  of  the  fluid,  the  duty  of 
which  is  to  keep  the  horn  in  proper  condition.  The  atrophy  of  the 
frog  in  the  shod  foot  is  a  striking  testimony  that  the  nourishment  is 
lacking.  There  is  no  longer  the  stimulus  which  exercise  gives,  and 
though  there  is  no  waste  from  wear,  the  supply  is  cut  ofi".  The  pre- 
venting the  wear  at  the  toe  by  the  application  of  a  tip — or,  more 
properly  speaking,  a  lunette  shoe  extending  as  far  back  as  the  point 
of  the  frog,  or  a  trifle  further  back — does  not  seem  to  retard  the 
growth  of  the  horn  at  the  part  covered  by  the  iron.  This  probably 
arises  from  the  posterior  portion  of  the  foot  being  so  much  more 
pliant,  and  the  stimulus  to  the  secretory  vessels  of  the  coronet  suffi- 
cient to  keep  up  the  healthy  action  of  the  whole  of  the  circle.  Since 
using  tips  I  have  noticed  that  the  toe  would  appear  long  before  they 
had,  apparently,  been  on  a  sufficient  time  to  account  for  the  extra 
growth.  It  was  ascribed  to  the  wearing  away  of  the  heel,  while  the  toe 
was  guarded;  but  a  late  experiment  shows  that  this  was  only  partially 
the  cause.  On  the  19th  of  January,  X  X  was  shod  with  tips 
weighing  seven  ounces  each.  Pi-evious  to  that  he  had  been 
without  anything  on  his  feet,  and  was  turned,  during  the  day, 
into  a  small  lot.  There  was  very  little  wearing  of  the  horn, 
and  when  the  tips  were  put  on  the  heels  had  to  be  low- 
ered to  give  the  proper  bearmg.  When  this  reduction  was 
made,  a  gauge  was  set  so  as  to  give  an  accurate  measure- 
ment from  the  ground  surface  to  the  junction  of  the  hair  and  horn. 
At  this  date,  the  16  th  of  February,  four  weeks  since  the  tips  were 
put  on,  the  toe  is  quite  long,  altogether  too  much  so  to  give  a  jiroper 
bearing  to  the  foot,  but  the  gauge  shows  that  the  wear  at  the  heel 


BEDDING    THE    TIPS.  91 

has  not  been  quite  as  mucli  as  the  growth.  He  has  been  used,  with 
few  exceptions,  daily  on  the  road,  and  as  most  of  the  time  the  streets 
were  wet,  there  was  more  wear  than  there  would  have  been  in  dry- 
weather.  The  streets  and  drives  in  Oakland  are  formed  of  macadam, 
with  gi-avel  or  finely-broken  stone  on  the  surface,  and  the  hoi-n  wears 
away  more  rapidly  than  in  the  summer.  This  experiment  was  fur- 
ther proof  of  the  necessity  for  bedding  the  tip,  as  heretofore  described, 
into  the  foot,  and  also  that  it  is  important  to  frequently  reset  them. 
The  growth  of  the  horn,  between  the  tip  and  the  foot,  being  more 
rapid  than  Avhen  the  full  shoe  is  used,  the  iron  must  be  i-emoved 
whenever  the  bearing  is  thrown  out  of  the  proper  level.  As  steel 
tips,  hardened,  are  used,  there  is  little  wear  in  the  metal,  and  if  the 
heel  is  not  as  low  as  it  was,  there  is  the  difference  to  overcome.  The 
best  plan  is,  to  sink  the  tip  rather  more  than  to  bring  it  to  the  level 
of  the  heel,  and  the  action  of  some  hoi'ses  is  benefited  thereby.  But 
as  the  same  nail-holes  can  be  used  for  two  shoeings,  when  steel  is  the 
material,  and  not  longer  than  three  weeks  intervene  between  the 
"  removals,"  there  is  no  injury  from  extra  pei'forations.  The  fewer 
holes  in  the  horn,  the  fewer  tubes  will  be  cut,  and  the  supply  of  fluid 
they  carry  only  slightly  interfered  with. 

The  objection  to  the  use  of  tips  which  is  the  most  frequently  and 
persistently  urged  by  those  who  denounce  the  practice,  is  the  claim 
that  the  heels  will  be  bruised  if  left  as  nature  made  them.  This  has 
a  plausible  look,  and  without  the  person  who  hears  it  offered  has 
made  some  progress  in  acquiring  the  art  of  for)ning  his  opinions  on 
what  can  be  proved,  is  very  likely  to  carry  conviction.  In  former 
papers  tlie  fallacy  of  the  claim  was  shown,  but  as  such  wide  intervals 
have  elapsed  since  the  publication  of  the  series,  it  becomes  necessary 
to  reiterate.  With  the  dx-awbacks  arising  from  a  want  of  connec- 
tion, alid  the  necessity  of  going  over  the  same  ground,  there  are 
advantages  in  being  able  to  make  more  positive  statements  resulting 
from  later  experiments,  and  even  if  the  repetition  may  be  something 
like  a  tale  many  times  told,  the  subject  is  of  importance  enough  to 
warrant  the  rehearsal.  The  importance  of  taking  cai-e  of  the  feet  of 
the  horse  has  always  been  realized,  and  there  have  been  so  many 
plans  for  counteracting  the  ailment  which  is  most  pi'evalent  that  it 


92  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

appears  singular  that  so  little  progress  is  made.  The  trouble  has 
been  that  a  large  majority  of  those  who  have  been  given  advice 
have  been  themselves  misled  by  the  idea  that  protection  to  all  parts 
of  the  foot  was  indispensable.  The  few  who  have  advocated  the 
natural  method,  so  far  as  domestication  would  permit,  have  been 
forced  to  meet  this  obstacle,  aggravated  with  the  tendency  of  horse 
owners  to  let  others  think  for  them,  and  an  unwillingness  to  give  a 
fair  trial  to  so  simple  a  remedy.  When  the  groom  and  the  smith 
told  the  owner  that  bruises  of  the  sole  would  surely  result  if  there 
was  not  an  iron  barrier  to  protect,  it  appeared  reasonable,  as  it  may 
have  been  that  when  a  boy  he  had  endured  the  pain  of  "  stone 
bruises  "  from  running  barefooted,  or  "  stubbed  his  toe  "  on  a  pro- 
jecting rock.  The  remembrance  of  sitting  in  agony,  rubbing  the 
foot  in  a  grip  as  hard  as  he  could  make  his  fingers  clinch  it,  swaying 
his  body  and  gritting  his  teeth  as  some  relief,  gave  emphasis  to  the 
claim,  and  though  he  may  have  gone  to  the  shop,  firm  in  the  deter- 
mination to  try  the  method  he  had  read  of,  the  words  had  weight 
and  his  good  intentions  were  overcome  ;  overcome  by  dogmatic  opin- 
ions without  ai-gument  or  logical  reasoning  to  sustain  them. 

If  he  remembered  as  well  the  acute  pain  caused  by  a  small  pebble 
or  even  a  kernel  of  corn  getting  between  the  foot  and  the  shoe,  he 
would  know  that  there  were  other  casualties  beside  bruises  to  guard 
against.  But  there  is  nothing  analogous  between  the  foot  of  the 
biped  and  quadruped,  and  the  stone  bruise  on  the  bai-efooted  boy, 
and  that  which  causes  corns  in  the  horse,  are  widely  difierent.  No 
matter  how  thick  the  skin  on  the  heel  may  have  become,  it  is  a 
slight  protection  in  comparison  to  the  walls,  bars  and  sole  of  the 
horse.  That  is,  when  all  parts  of  the  foot  of  the  horse  are  in  a 
natural  condition.  When  the  smith  has  pared  away  the  natural  de- 
fenses so  that  it  will  "  yield  to  a  strong  pressure  of  the  thumb,"  as 
is  recommended  in  the  essay  which  drew  the  $500  prize  in  England, 
forty  or  fifty  years  ago,  the  only  plan  is  to  raise  it  so  that  it  will  not 
perfoi-m  the  duty  it  was  intended  it  should.  A  little  more  paring 
and  the  sole  would  be  entirely  cut  away,  for  when  it  will  give  to  the 
pressure  spoken  of  there  is  a  very  thin  layer  of  horn  left. 

I  have  astonished  quite  a  number  of  visitoi's  by  showing  them  the 


A    PRACTICAL    ILLUSTRATION.  ^  93 

results  of  wearing  tips  in  the  sti-engthening  of  the  posterior  portion 
of  the  foot.  Tlie  angle  between  the  bars  and  the  walls,  the  seat  of 
corns,  is  filled  with  a  dense,  elastic  material,  which  does  not  show  a 
trace  of  the  discoloration  which  is  nearly  univei'sal  in  shod  horses. 
The  frog  is  as  elastic  as  a  piece  of  solid  rubber,  and  the  point  of  it 
extends  to  within  a  short  distance  of  the  toe.  A  few  days  ago,  I 
was  resetting  the  tips  on  X  X  and  fortunately  a  neighbor  was  watch- 
ing the  operation,  who  adhered  firmly  to  the  old,  old  methods  of 
shoeing.  He  had  frequently  urged  the  necessity  of  protection,  and 
could  not  see  why  the  quartei's  and  heels  should  requii'e  it  less  than 
the  toe.  It  was  a  good  opportunity  to  make  one  convert,  and  with- 
out acquainting  him  of  my  intention,  I  led  the  conversation  to  shoe- 
ing. He  combat  ted  the  statements  energetically,  laying  the  greatest 
stress  on  the  liability  of  bruises.  He  admitted  that  the  chief  amount 
of  friction  was  at  the  toe,  and  an  old  shoe  which  had  the  toe  entirely 
worn  through  at  the  outer  edge,  with  quite  a  thickness  of  iron  at  the 
heel,  was  proof  of  that  fact  if  he  had  not  admitted  it.  The  blow 
•  came  on  the  heel  first,  and  as  the  foot  rolled  over  the  pivotal  point, 
the  friction  wore  away  the  metal. 

"  But,"  he  said,  "  the  fact  that  the  blow  is  mainly  on  the  heel 
shows  the  necessity  for  protecting  that  with  a  hard  material.  In  a 
natui-al  state  horses  roam  over  an  uncultivated  country.  Thei'e  is 
either  growing  herbage,  fallen  leaves,  or  snow,  to  make  a  cushion  for 
the  foot  to  strike  upon  ;  but  on  traveled  roads,  on  the  paved  streets 
of  a  citv,  on  the  solid  body  of  macadam  such  as  the  streets  of  Oak- 
land, there  must  be  protection."     I  replied  with  the  query  :  "  Mr. 

J ,  what,  in  your  opinion,  would  be  the  effect  of  driving  a  horse 

wearing  tips,  for  years  nearly  every  day,  and  fast  enough  to  be  called 
a  cood  traveler,  on  these  Oakland  streets,  and  on  the  roads  in  the 
vicinit)-'?"  "Bruises  on  the  heel,  and  the  wearing  away  of  the  un- 
protected parts  so  as  to  make  the  animal  too  sore  for  use,  and  if  per- 
sisted in  ther^  would  be  violent  inflammatory  action  which  ultimately 
would  destroy  the  foot."  "  Very  well,"  was  the  answer,  "and  if 
you  have  an  hour  or  two  to  spare  I  will  endeavor  to  convince  you  of 
the  error  of  your  views."  This  conversation  took  place  in  the  house, 
and  before  going  to  the  barn  I  showed  liim  how  the  horse  had  been 


94  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

shod  for  the  past  six  years,  by  reading  extracts  from  journals.  For 
six  yeai'S  he  had  worn  tips,  with  a  few  exceptions.  Twice  full  shoes 
had  been  put  on  in  front,  and  at  other  times  three-quarter  shoes,  but 
with  the  two  exceptions  the  inside  quarter  had  been  bare.  The 
three-quarter  shoes  had  been  put  on  for  the  purpose  of  testing  the 
effect  on  the  action,  and  not  for  any  necessity  for  protection.  From 
August  17,  1880,  until  October  4,  1881,  he  was  driven  without  either 
tips  or  shoes  on  his  hind  feet,  and  it  was  rai*e  that  there  was  a  day 
during  the  time  when  he  was  not  driven.  The  tips  which  he  had  on 
were  set  the  19th  of  January;  and,  as  was  stated  in  the  pi*evious 
article,  there  had  been  so  mucli  growth  of  the  horn  that  the  toes 
were  too  long.  The  guage  showed  that  there  had  been  a  trifle  more 
growth  at  the  heel  than  the  wear.  On  the  16th  of  February  the  tips 
were  pulled  oflf  and  the  extra  horn  pared  away.  There  was  a  slight 
discoloration  immediately  under  the  iron,  but  this  was  very  shallow, 
and  my  friend  remarked  that  the  hoof  was  in  capital  shape  ;  and, 
doubtless,  I  had  some  kind  of  hoof  ointment  which  was  the  means  of 
keeping  it  in  such  fine  condition.  I  assured  him  that  the  day  of  all 
these  nostrums  had  passed  away,  so  far  as  I  was  concerned. 

Soaking-tubs  were  discarded,  and  only  at  rare  intervals  was  a  wet 
sponge  applied  to  the  hoof.  The  place  for  the  reception  of  the  tip 
was  cut,  leaving  the  shoulder  which  the  end  of  it  was  to  rest  against 
nearly  half  an  inch  in  depth.  It  was  a  work  of  some  time  to  prop- 
erly prepare  it  for  the  tip,  and  it  is  a  job  which  always  "  starts  the 
sweat "  in  streams.  The  trouble  is  to  get  a  true  bearing,  and  this  is 
far  more  difficult  than  when  a  full  shoe  is  to  be  put  on.  In  this  lat- 
ter case,  the  eye  tells  at  a  glance  if  it'is  "  out  of  wind,"  whereas  the 
shoulders  are  in  the  way,  and  the  plan  followed  is  to  make  the  foot 
surface  of  the  tip  as  true  as  I  can  file  it,  and  then  make  the  horn 
comport  with  the  tip.  Of  course,  the  outside  of  the  tip  is  fitted  to 
the  wall  before  the  surface-filing  is  done.  When  the  tip  was  nailed 
on,  the  shoulder  was  an  eighth  of  an  inch  above  the  gr^nd  surface 
of  the  tip  when  the  foot  was  held  between  the  knees,  and  this  had 

to  be  cut  away  to  give  the  proper  bearing.     "  Now,  Mr.  J ,"  I 

remarked,  "you  will  see  a  foot  which  has  travelled  over  these  Oak- 
land streets  for  six  years,  besides  galloping  with  the  trotters,  trained 


A   CONVERT,  95 

and  running  races  in  harness,  worii  toe-weiglits,  side-weights,  under- 
gone all  kinds  of  expeiiments,  hacked  about  to  all  sorts  of  vehicles, 
and  with  occasional  long  drives  and  quite  rapid  ones.  According  to 
your  ideas  the  foot  should  be  ruined  beyond  hope  of  redemption. 
You  acknowledge  that  the  outward  form  is  nearly  perfect  ;  it  would 
be  entirely  so  if  he  had  never  worn  shoes  ;  and  now  we  will  look  for 
the  bruises  which  a  short  time  ago  vou  said  were  sure  to  be  found." 
It  cut  readily,  and  the  knife  sliced  off  a  piece  from  the  shoulder  to 
the  heel  and  about  a  sixteenth  of  an  inch  thick.  It  was  from  the 
inside  quarter,  and  beneath  it  the  horn  did  not  show  a  particle  of 
discoloration,  as  had  been  the  case  at  the  toe.  We  handed  it  to  him, 
and  he  bent  and  twisted  it,  put  it  between  his  teeth  to  test  the 
toughness,  noted  the  width  of  the  frog  and  the  india-i-ubber-like 
elasticity  it  displayed.  After  a  minute  and  careful  examination  he 
admitted  that  his  previous  opinions  were  certainly  erroneous,  but 
before  he  made  many  remarks  I  interi-upted  him,  with  a  request 
that  he  should  pay  me  another  visit  in  a  week  from  that  time,  when 
a  new  set  of  tips  were  to  be  put  on  Anteeo,  as  I  desired  to  show  him 
a  perfect  foot.  That  of  X  X  had  been  injured  by  wearing  shoes, 
and  came  very  near  breaking  down  on  that  account,  while  the  colt 
has  never  worn  shoes  in  front. 


CHAPTER  XI. 

A  Natural  Foot  vs.  A  Perfect  Foot. 


A  natural  foot  may  not  be  perfect,  and  then  there  may  be  advan- 
tages in  artificial  appliances.  But  in  a  large  majority  of  animals  the 
feet  are  nearly  right,  if  Nature  has  not  been  tampered  with  in  the 
effort  to  make  them  so.  If  permitted  to  exercise  on  the  same  kind 
of  ground  which  would  be  chosen  in  a  natural  range,  it  would  be 
rare,  indeed,  when  there  was  much  divergence  from  the  true  form. 
By  a  natural  range  we  mean  that  part  of  a  country  which  would  be 
selected  by  horses  which  could  follow  what  is  called  instinct,  but 
which  is  so  nearly  allied  to  reason  that  we  never  could  see  where  the 
difference  was.  With  the  herbage  equal,  there  will  be  a  general  resort 
to  the  highest  ground,  and  if  it  is  necessary  to  leave  it  to  find  water, 
as  soon  as  thirst  is  assuaged  the  band  will  return.  Left  to  them- 
selves, the  firm  ground  is  invariably  chosen,  and,  though  they  may 
be  di'iven  to  seek  refuge  from  files  by  standing  immersed  as  much  as 
possible,  there  is  a  disinclination  to  wet  their  feet  and  legs.  The 
whole  system  of  soaking  the  feet,  stuffing  with  clay,  cow-dung  and 
hoof-pads,  is  entirely  contrary  to  nature,  and  the  use  of  hoof  oint- 
ments of  any  description  a  departure  which  will  end  in  injury.  Even 
the  washing  of  the  legs  is  carried  to  an  extent  which  does  damage, 
and,  as  a  rule,  water  should  never  be  applied  to  the  horn.  It  may 
require  more  woi-k  to  cleanse  the  feet  of  the  dirt  which  has  been 
gathered  in  a  drive  through  the  mud ;  and  to  wash  them  and  the 
legs  with  water  is  a  laboi'-saving  conti'ivance  for  the  groom,  but  is  a 


CRACKED    HEELS.  97 

j)ositive  injury  to  the  feet,  and  Las  also  a  tendency  to  crack  the  heels. 
There  is  trouble  enough  from  the  liability  of  the  skin  to  crack  be- 
tween the  foot  and  pastern,  without  aggravating  a  tendency  which  is 
unavoidable  at  times,  with  the  best  of  care.  Cracked  heels  are  one 
of  the  most  pestering  things  which  the  trainer  has  to  contend  against 
in  the  category  of  minor  troubles,  and  frequently  they  are  of  major 
importance.  Not  alone  from  the  pain  which  causes  the  animal  to 
shorten  its  stride,  but,  in  aggravated  cases,  the  inflammatory  action 
extends  to  the  tendons,  and  the  breaking  down  which  results,  if  the 
work  is  continued,  is  due,  perhaps,  to  the  use  of  water.  The  erro- 
neous impression  which  is  so  prevalent  that  moisture  is  beneficial  to 
the  foot,  has  done  gi-eat  injury. 

This  has  arisen  from  the  palliation  of  the  injuries  which  resulted 
from  improper  shoeing,  and  from  the  mutilations  of  the  foot,  which 
it  is  thought  that  it  is  the  impei-ative  diity  of  the  blacksmith  to 
accomplish.  This  renders  the  horn  brittle,  and  temporary  elasticity 
is  gained  by  the  artificial  moisture.  The  natural  foot  has  none  of  its. 
functions  impaired.  The  seci'etory  vessels  are  allowed  full  play,, 
strengthened  by  action,  and  the  deposit,  consequently,  is  of  the  right 
character.  The  thousands  of  minute  tubes  are  filled  with  healthy 
fluid,  and  these  are  not  marred  by  knife  or  nail.  When  worn  away 
by  the  attrition  between  the  foot  and  the  ground,  there  is  the  same- 
safeguaixl  against  depletion  as  follows  the  searing  of  an  artery,  and, 
the  lower  portion  is  glazed  with  the  friction,  which  also  accomplishes, 
another  beneficial  duty,  viz.:  the  prevention  of  absorption  of  moist- 
ure. Anyone  who  will  take  the  trouble  to  examine  the  natural  foot 
of  the  horse  will  find  that  ample  provision  has  been  made  to  exclude' 
water.  The  born  is  coated  with  an  enamel  which  is  as  impervious  to^ 
the  entrance  of  moisture  as  a  plate  of  glass,  and  the  sole  in  a  natural 
state  will  also  exclude  it.  This  phase  of  the  foot  question  was  forci- 
bly presented  from  a  conversation  with  a  gentleman  a  few  days  ago.. 
He  had  formerly  been  a  blacksmith,  but  for  the  past  number  of  yeai-s> 
has  been  engaged  in  driving  cattle,  formei'ly  from  Texas,  and  later 
from  the  mountain  ranges.  We  obtained  much  valuable  information 
from  him,  which  will  be  bi'iefly,  and  only  in  small  part,  alluded  to. 
now,  as  we  hope  to  have  a  longer  interview,  and  whick  we  will  ert- 


98  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS 

deavor  to  make  a  more  satisfactory  record  of.  He  lias  liad  an  expe- 
rience which  falls  to  the  lot  of  few,  and  possessing  keen  powers  of 
observation,  he  has  been  beneiited  by  the  experience  in  an  unusual 
degree.  With  250  saddle-horses  in  his  emploj^ment,  engaged  in  as 
arduous  duties  to  try  the  feet  and  legs  as  could  be  imagined,  we 
were  prepared  to  hear  him  staunch  in  his  advocacy  of  a  natural  foot, 
though  we  expected  that  more  of  the  antiquated  notions  of  the  shoe- 
ing-forge  would  be  exhibited.  One  remark  he  made  will  be  the 
limit  in  this  ai'ticle.  "  Give  him,"  he  said,  "a  horse  with  bad  feet, 
no  matter  how  bad,  so  long  as  the  natural  functions  have  not  been 
entirely  destroyed,  and  by  the  time  there  has  been  growth  enough  to 
remove  the  brittleness  from  the  nail-holes  down,  the  cure  in  most 
cases  will  be  accomplished.''  His  treatment  was  to  tuin  him  bare- 
footed on  a  proper  range,  and  in  place  of  this  being  the  marshy 
ground  which  is  usually  recommended,  it  was  hilly,  rolling  land. 
This  he  further  illustrated  by  experience  with  a  large  band  of  cattle 
which  he  bought.  They  had  become  so  foot-sore  that  they  could  not 
be  driven,  and  were  then  feeding  on  the  low  ground.  After  the 
purchase  he  transferred  them  to  the  hills,  and  in  a  short  time  they 
were  able  to  travel.  The  brittleness  below  the  nail- holes  is  doubtless 
caused  by  ciitting  the  tubes.  The  perforations  which  are  made  by 
the  nails  cut  off  the  supply  from  above,  and  the  catting  to  prepare 
the  horn  for  the  I'eception  of  the  shoe  empties  the  lower  part  of  the 
tubes  of  the  fluid  which  gives  vitality.  We  have  had  a  capital  illus- 
tration of  this  in  Lady  Viva,  a  filly  which  was  two  years  old  on  the 
3d  inst.  Nearly  a  year  ago  she  suddenly  exhibited  lameness,  and 
most  careful  examination  failed  to  discover  the  cause  of  it.  Feeling 
that  it  was  probably  in  the  foot,  every  method  was  followed  which 
promised  elucidation,  but  without  avail.  It  was  several  months 
before  the  cause  of  the  trouble  was  manifest.  She  had  a  habit  of 
climbing  on  the  fence,  resting  her  feet  on  the  bar  to  wljich  the  boards 
were  nailed,  in  order  to  look  over,  and,  doubtless,  got  a  redwood 
sliver  in  her  toe,  at  the  juncture  of  the  sole  and  wall,  which  broke  off 
so  far  in  the  horn  as  to  escape  the  search.  This  came  through  at  the 
coronet,  leaving  a  crevice  of  three-quarters  of  an  inch.  This  of  courts 
cau  sed  aseparation  of  the  horn,  and  though,  after  there  was  growth 


LADY    VIVA.  "99 

enough  to  relieve  the  pain,  the  lameness  vanished,  it  hnd  been  of  such 
long  standing  as  to  interfere  with  the  proportion  of  the  foot.  The 
one  affected  is  still  a  trifle  smaller  than  the  other,  and  with  hisrher 
heels.  This  came  from  the  inflammatory  action  while  the  foreign 
substance  was  in  the  foot,  and  by  keeping  that  part  cut  down  so  that 
the  frog  was  brought  into  play,  it  has  spread  to  nearly  the  natural 
proportion. 

The  crack  in  the  horn  was  nearly  three  quarters  of  an  inch  above 
the  ground  surface  of  the  toe,  when  we  began  to  drive  her  on  the 
road,  and  not  very  long  afterwards,  the  toe  broke  away,  leaving  a 
gap  the  width  of  the  crack.  This  oom{)elled  putting  a  tip  on  that 
foot,  and  in  order  that  there  should  be  no  disparity,  a  tip  was  also 
put  on  the  other.  The  tip-i  weighed  nearly  four  ounces  each,  and 
were  put  on  the  15th  of  February.  The  driving  commenced  on  the 
8th,  anl  sh3  wa,  driven  eiltirely  on  the  mioalamized  streets  of  Oak- 
land, the  others  b^ing  too  muddy  to  exercise  her  upon.  The  well 
foot  was  slightly  worn  at  the  toe.  though  it  did  not  i-equire  any 
"  protection,"  and  the  intention  was  not  to  use  even  the  tips  for  some 
timp,  if  at  all.  On  the  7th  of  M  irch  she  lost  the  tip  from  the 
broken  foot,  and  returned  from  the  drive  with  the  toe  broken  for 
half  an  inch  or  more  on  each  side  of  the  gap.  That  this  break  came 
from  the  brittleness  caused  by  the  separation  of  the  tubes  is  evident, 
foi'  the  hind  feat,  whicli  have  not  bean  protected,  have  not  broken  a 
particle,  and  ava  in  capital  condition.  On  the  following  day  a  tip 
was  put  on,  anl  in  ordar  to  set  it  properly,  the  horn  had  to  be  cut 
siifficiently  to  reach  that  which  had  been  deposited  since  the  break 
at  the  coronet.  There  was  a  pilpable  diS'erenca  between  that  and 
the  brittle  portion,  the  former  being  much  the  toughest.  The  junc- 
tion of  the  wall  and  sole  gave  evidence  of  the  injury,  there  being  an 
entirely  difierent  appeai-ance  at  the  point  of  contact  from  that  of  the 
well  foot.  If  the  examination  hal  been  thorousrh  enouofli  at  the 
time  of  the  injury  to  discover  the  sliver,  the  extraction  of  it  would 
have  saved  the  foot ;  and  though  the  catting  necessary  might  have 
resulted  in  more  acute  lameness,  it  would  have  been  for  a  brief 
period.  We  were  mua'a  disappointed  in  not  baing  able  to  try  the 
experiment  of  using  a  natural  foot  without  protection  of  any  kind, 


100  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

but  in  this  case  will  have  to  confine  the  tests  to  the  hind  feet. 
There  is  more  of  a  sliding  motion  behind  than  in  front,  and  as  a 
general  rule,  the  hind  shoes  have  to  be  replaced  while  those  in  front 
are  compai'atively  unworn.  Some  of  the  fast  trotters  will  wear  a 
hind  shoe  entirely  out  in  two  weeks,  the  front  having  only  a  slight 
bevel  at  the  toe. 


CHAPTER  XI— Continued. 
Reason  for  Want  of  Correction — History  of  Anteeo. 


It  may  appear  soiiiewliat  egotistical  for  the  writer  to  illusti'ate  the 
lessons  on  shoeing  with  histories  of  his  own  horses,  but  owing  to  the 
absence  of  other  data,  that  course  is  forced  upon  him,  and  without 
entering  into  minute,  and,  perhaps,  in  some  cases,  tedious  descrip- 
tions, the  explanations  would  not  be  clear.  The  few  which  were 
available  for  experiments  have  necessarily  extended  the  time  to,  a 
long  period,  and  it  is  now  six  years  since  the  departure  was  made. 
In  every  case,  excepting  the  one  which  will  be  the  subject  of  this 
chapter,  the  animals  experimented  with  had  worn  full  shoes,  and 
though  this  gave  the  opportunity  of  contrasting  the  systems,  it  is 
evident  that  others  were  needed  to  show  the  .  benefits  which  would 
follow  from  the  functions  of  the  foot  never  having  been  interfered 
with.  The  colt,  Anteeo,  gave  this  opportunity,  and  so  far  as  can  be 
determined  by  a  trial  extending  from  the  time  he  was  nearly  four- 
teen months  old  until  now,  when  thirty-four  lunar  revolutions  have 
elapsed  since  the  date  of  his  birth.  The  history  of  these  twenty 
months  of  childhood  had  to  be  quite  full  in  order  to  give,  with  clear- 
ness, the  state  of  the  case,  and,  in  order  to  show  our  friend  the  actual 
eveiy-day  life,  without  the  trouble  of  going  over  the  pages  of  the 
journal,  the  information  was  condensed  into  the  following  synopsis  : 

Anteeo  was  foaled  on  the  5th  day  of  May,  1879.  This  being 
rather  a  "  late  colt "  for  California,  we  determined  not  to  breed  the 
mare,  and  permitted  him  to  suck  as  long  as  it  was  deemed  beneficial, 
though  after  he  was  six  months  old,  it  would  have  been  as  well  to 
wean  him,  and  the  two  months  more  were  of  little   benefit.     Before 


102  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

he  was  weaued  he  was  led  a  few  times  by  the  side  of  the  mothei-, 
showing  fine  action  when  trotting.  Tlie  day  he  was  eleven  months 
old,  led  him  by  the  side  of  X  X,  and  occasionally  afterwaixls  ;  and 
on  the  26th  of  April,  timed  him  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  1:10.  .  This 
was  certainly  a  fair  beginning,  and  on  the  29tli  he  made  1:07. 
Nothing  more  was  done  with  him  until  June  3d,  when,  led  by  the 
side  of  X  X,  he  trotted  a  quarter  in  1:05  ;  and  on  the  5th  and  7th 
in  1:04.  On  June  12th,  he  was  harnessed  and  driven  by  the  side  of 
X  X — the  horse  in  the  shafts  of  a  breaking-cart,  the  colt  on  the  off 
side,  his  traces  hitched  to  a  whiffle-tree,  which  was  fastened  to  a  bar 
tied  to  the  shafts,  and  projecting  far  enough  for  the  purpose.  He  had 
been  driven  previously  with  the  harness  on  to  accustom  him  to  being 
reined,  etc.,  and  drove  Very  quietly.  On  the  22d  of  June,  he  was 
shod  with  tips,  weighing  about  four  ounces  each.  His  exercise  was 
confined  to  leading  him  by  the  side  of  X  X,  and  on  the  26th  of 
June  he  trotted  the  "  back-quai-ter "  in  58  seconds,  and  tlie  home- 
sti'etch  in  56  seconds.  This  was  a  manifest  improvement,  which  was 
ascribed  to  the  tips  favoring  his  action ;  and  on  the  14th  of  July,  he 
was  hitched  to  a  breaking-cart,  and  he  went  quietly.  On  the  20th 
of  July,  he  was  harnessed  to  a  light  sulky,  but  he  could  not  trot 
within  15  seconds  to  the  quarter  as  fast  in  that  as  when  led.  This 
was  thought  to  be  caused  by  striking  his  hind  foot  when  going  under 
the  front,  and  rolls  on  his  hind  pasterns  improved  him,  but  not 
enough  to  show  the  speed  when  he  was  led.  To  test  the  effect  of  the 
toe-weights,  on  the  6th  of  August,  tips,  with  a  "  spur "  welded  to 
them,  were  put  on,  spur  and  tip  weighing  seven  and  one-half  ounces, 
and  on  the  following  day  he  was  driven  with  them  and  toe-weights 
of  three  and  one-half  ounces.  He  trotted  better,  but  pulled  up  quite 
lame,  which  we  thought  was  occasioned  by  paring  the  foot.  The  boy 
who  held  him  at  the  shop  asciibed  it  to  a  twitch  the  blacksmith  gave 
his  leg.  He  had  driven  the  nails  and  taken  the  foot  forward  to  clinch 
them,  when  the  colt  tried  to  get  his  foot  away.  The  smith  had  a  gi-asp 
with  his  left  hand  immediately  below  the  knee,  and  the  foot  in  his 
right,  and  when  the  colt  struggled  he  snatched  it  violently 
\ipwai-ds.  The  diagnosis  of  the  boy  proved  correct,  as  ulti- 
mately  there   was   swelling    just   below    the   trapezium.       Think- 


THE    FIRST    EMBRYO.  103 

ing  it  more  trivial  tlian  it  afterwai'ds  proved,  on  the  9th  a  pair  of 
hind  shoes  were  put  on,  in  order  to  hokl  a  scalping-boot,  but  the 
swelling  and  lameness  continuing,  notwithstanding  fomentations  and 
cooling  appliances,  t^je  shoes  were  pulled  off,  a  light  blister  applied, 
and  he  was  allowed  to  run  in  a  small  lot  during  the  day.  October 
3d  he  was  taken  up  and  driven  barefooted  a  quarter  in  58  seconds, 
and  on  the  10th  in  54  seconds.  Previous  to  this  we  had  given  up  all 
expectation  of  trotting  him  in  the  Embryo  Stake  of  1880,  though  the 
move  was  so  satisfactory  that  it  was  concluded  to  give  him  another 
trial.  On  the  13th  of  October  he  was  shod  with  tips  in  front,  weigh- 
ing six  ounces  each,  and  shoes  behind,  so  as  to  attach  scalping-boots. 
On  that  day  he  was  weighed,  and  for  a  colt  of  seventeen  months  old 
he  showed  plenty  of  bulk,  as  the  record  was  810  pounds,  and  lih 
hands  hijirh.  The  23d  of  October  he  was  a  trifle  lame,  and  his  work 
was  limited  to  a  jogging,  with  an  occasional  spurt  of  speed.  On  the 
28th  the  tips  were  reset  and  lighter  hind  shoes  put  on.  The  tips  had 
been  worn  some,  and  were  filed  down  to  i^  ounces  each,  including  the 
nails,  and  the  shoes  the  same  weight.  He  was  driven  the  following 
day  in  3:18,  and  we  were  satisfied  that  he  could  trot  the  mile  better 
than  3:20.  This  view  proved  to  be  correct,  as  on  November  5th  he 
won  the  stake  in  3:17-i,  the  last  half  in  1:37|,  and  evidently  could 
have  gone  considerably  faster.  He  was  worked  slow,  and  on  Novem- 
ber 10th  the  tips  were  reset,  and  three-quarter  shoes,  covering  the 
toe  and  outside  wall  of  the  hind  feet,  put  on.  The  use  of  the  three- 
quarter  shoes  has  been  partially  explained  in  former  articles,  but 
later  experiments  have  shaken  the  old  belief,  and  the  effects  are  so 
different  from  what  was  formerly  anticipated,  that  it  is  likely  there 
will  be  a  complete  change.  It  will  require  one  or  more  chapters  to 
present  the  features,  and  as  this  is  mainly  to  show  the  result  of  the 
use  of  tips,  the  consideration  will  be  postponed.  On  the  12th  of 
November  he  was  driven  in  46  seconds,  and  this  was  the  fastest  time 
he  made  in  his  yearling  form.  He  was  driven  a  few  times  on  the 
ro  id  and  ran  in  a  small  lot  during  the  winter,  when  the  days  were 
suitable.  On  the  4th  of  Apri\  1881,  his  feet  were  trimmed,  and  he 
was  led  to  the  track.  On  the  ^5th  he  was  hitched  to  a  breaking- 
cart,  driven  a  few  times,  and  again  turned  out. 


104  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGIITS. 

In  explanation  of  the  erratic  manner  he  was  exercised  during  the 
summer  of  1881,  a  brief  statement  is  required.  A  colored  boy  who 
accompanied  us  from  Chicago  was  the  only  help  kept.  He  broke 
the  colt  and  worked  him  and  drove  him  in  the  race.  From  a  fall,  when 
hoisting  hay  into  the  barn,  supplemented  with  a  cold  taken  when  on 
a  duck-hunting  expedition,  his  lungs  were  affected,  and  we  did  not 
feel  that  he  ought  to  be  permitted  to  risk  the  labor  attending  work- 
ing and  taking  cai'e  of  a  colt  none  the  easiest  to  manage.  He  was 
extremely  sensitive  about  any  one  else  taking  care  of  him  or  others 
to  drive,  and  we  were  too  much  occupied  with  work  which  had  to  be 
done  to  give  him  personal  attention.  Thus  on  the  5th  of  May  he 
was  driven  to  a  breaking-cart  and  turned  in  a  small  lot  as  before 
until  June  1st,  when  he  was  driven  slow  in  breaking  cart  until  the 
9  th.  On  that  date  put  on  tips,  weighing  four  ounces  each  ;  the  day 
before  he  was  shod  behind  with  shoes  coveiing  the  toe  and  outside, 
leaving  the  inner  bare.  After  putting  on  the  tips  he  was  driven  to 
a  sulky  for  the  first  time  since  November,  and  moved  fast.  He  was 
driven  occasionally  until  June  29th,  when  having  to  attend  the  races 
at  Sacramento  he  was  tui^ned  in  lot.  The  11th  of  July  put  on  tips 
weighing  five  and  one-half  ounces  each,  and  he  wore  them  until 
August  8th  when  they  were  replaced  with  others  of  seven  and  one- 
half  ounces  each.  While  wearing  those  he  trotted  a  quarter  in  43 
seconds,  and  on  the  29th  of  August  they  were  taken  ofi"  and  others 
put  on  of  three  and  three-fourth  ounces.  With  the  light  ones  he 
handled  himself  more  satisfactorily,  though  having  to  attend  the 
fairs  of  the  Golden  Gate  and  State  Agricultural  Society  he  was 
turned  out,  the  tips  being  always  left  on  when  the  time  was  expected 
to  be  short.  He  ran  in  the  small  lot  during  the  day  from  the  first 
to  the  28th  of  September.  On  October  6th  put  on  weights  weighing 
five  and  one-half  ounces  each,  and  on  the  14th  drove  him  a  mile  in 
2:54|,  the  last  half  in  1:24,  and  keeping  him  all  the  time  well  within 
his  rate.  On  the  18th  he  trotted  a  quarter  in  40  seconds,  and  we 
felt  assured  that  he  could  show  a  "thirty  gait"  if  called  upon.  We 
drove  him  in  this  summer's  work,  though,  as  is  evident,  it  was  of 
too  desultory  a  character  to  be  called  training.  Still  it  was  a  fair 
test  of  the  tips,  both  as  to  the  efiect  on  the  feet  and  to  improvements 


WIDTH  AND  ELASTICITY  OF  FROG.  105 

in  trotting.  We  were  laid  up  part  of  the  time,  confined  to  our  room 
from  the  24th  of  October,  and  from  then  to  the  race  he  was  in  the 
hands  of  another  colored  boy  who  came  from  the  East  with  us. 

He  won  the  second  Embryo  with  him,  making  the  third  heat  in 
2:52,  when  again  he  was  turned  out.  On  Jan.  2nd  of  this  year  tips 
were  put  on,  the  same  which  he  wore  in  the  race,  and  from  that 
time  until  the  28th  he  wiis  allowed  to  run  in  the  lot  or  exercise  by 
leading  when  he  was  harnessed  to  the  breaking-cart.  He  was  driven 
on  the  streets  of  Oakland,  daily,  generally  long  drives,  and  at  times 
fast,  the  tips  having  been  reset  on  February  7th,  but  merely  paring 
enough  so  that  the  old  nail-holes  could  be  used,  and  on  the  23d  of 
February  was  the  day  fixed  for  our  friend  to  witness  the  operation, 
and  see  the  condition  of  the  foot.  The  tips  were  semicircles  with  a 
diameter  of  five  inches,  and  this  brought  the  posterior  portion  about 
three  quartei's  of  an  inch  in  the  rear  of  the  point  of  the  frog.  They 
weighed  seven  ounces  each,  and  were  three-eighths  of  an  inch  in 
thickness  at  the  end,  being  a  trifle  thicker  at  the  toe,  the  width  at 
the  toe  seven-eighths  of  an  inch,  and  at  the  ends  five-eighths.  They 
were  made  of  tool  steel,  the  nail-holes  countersunk  on  the  ground 
surface,  in  place  of  being  "  creased,"  the  countei-sinking  deep  enough 
to  imbed  the  head  of  the  nail.  From  so  little  horn  having  been  cut 
away  when  the  tips  were  reset,  there  was  a  supei*abundance  of  horn, 
and  the  shoulder  for  the  end  to  rest  against  was  cut  deeper  than  was 
required  to  imbed  the  tip.  The  rasp  was  used  to  lower  the  outside 
of  the  wall,  beveling  it  to  tlie  gauge-mark  on  the  outside,  and  back 
as  far  as  the  shoulder.  We  then  called  the  attention  of  our  fi-iend 
to  the  heels  of  the  feet,  and  width  and  elasticity  of  the  frogs.  There 
had  not  been  wear  enough  to  reduce  the  wall  to  the  level  of  the  sole 
and  bars,  and  it  was  prominent  and  without  a  break.  From  the 
shoulder  for  the  tip  to  rest  against  to  the  junction  of  the  wall  and 
bars,  was  a  little  over  two  inches,  and  it  would  be  impassible  to  im- 
prove on  the  general  contour  of  the  foot.  This  our  friend  admitted, 
and  when  tlie  knife  was  used  to  cut  away  the  superfluous  horn,  back 
of  the  rasping,  there  was  only  a  slight  discoloration,  which  the  first 
shaving  entirely  removed.  The  enamel  having  been  cut  with  the 
rasp,  it  was  an  easy  thing  to  cut  the  other  portion  with  the  keen, 


106  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

thin  hoof-knife,  though  the  thinnest  shavings  were  as  tough  as  the 
best  quality  of  whalebone.  It  was  a  work  of  time  to  get  a  smooth, 
perfect  bearing  for  the  tip  to  rest  npon,  and  when  a  fine  rasp  and  file 
was  brought  into  play  to  perfect  the  fit,  it  cut  slowly.  There  were 
three  nail-holes  on  each  side  of  the  tip,  and  our  friend  thought  two 
would  be  sufiicient.  The  explanation  for  using  three  nails  in  place 
of  two  was  that  we  desired  a  guard  against  any  chance  for  motion 
between  the  end  of  the  tip  and  the  foot,  and  that  where  so  long  a  tip 
was  used  the  rear  nail  was  at  the  end.  But  we  are  now  satisfied 
that  a  semicircle  extends  too  far  back,  and  that  one-third  will  be 
ample  protection.  "We  have  found  that  in  a  great  majority  of  in- 
stances the  rfear  nail,  on  one  side  or  other,  was  broken,  and  this  was 
caused  by  the  expansion  of  the  foot,  and  reaching  as  far  forward  as 
the  nailing.  The  nails  used  being  next  to  the  smallest  size,  the  con- 
stant pressure  from  giving  the  foot  an  opportunity  for  free  expansion 
broke  the  nail ;  whereas,  if  limited  to  one-third  of  the  circle,  that 
would  not  be  the  case.  That  this  would  be  ample  protection  we 
have  not  the  least  doubt ;  and  then  three  nails,  one  at  the  toe  and 
one  at  each  end,  would  hold  it  firmly  in  place.  At  all  events,  when 
the  foot  is  in  a  shape  which  will  permit  a  trial,  I  shall  make  the 
experiment.  My  friend  was  also  pleased  with  the  system  of  nailing, 
viz.,  driving  the  nail  from  the  inside  of  the  wall  through  it,  in  place 
of  splitting  the  layers  ;  and  also  at  the  use  of  a  small  gouge  to  re- 
move only  enough  of  the  horn  to  receive  the  "  clench,"  in  place  of 
cutting  the  enamel  from  one  nail  to  the  other,  as  when  the  file  is 
used.  The  two  exhibitions  removed  all  doubts,  and  he  was  lavish  in 
his  praises  of  a  plan  which  had  left  a  natural  and  perfect  foot. 


CHAPTER   XII. 

HISTORY    OF    ANTEEO    CONTINUED SKETCH    OF    ANTEVOLO. 

The  history  of  Anteeo  was  cai-ried  in  the  preceding  chapter  until 
February  23,  1882,  when  within  seventy  days  of  three  years  old, 
and  a  resume  to  the  present  date,  February  1,  1883,  will  show  how 
the  tips  have  answered  in  his  case.  It  would  be  tiresome  to  enter  into 
the  histoi-y  as  minutely  as  I  could  give  it,  as  everything  in  i-elation 
to  his  shoeing  and  work  has  been  noted  in  the  daily  journal. 

His  case  has  probably  elicited  more  discussion,  or,  rather,  more 
adverse  comments  on  the  method  he  was  shod  than  will  ever  occur 
again.  He  was  brought  prominently  before  the  public  from  being 
engaged  in  some  important  stakes,  and  all  his  shortcomings  charged 
to  the  tips.  Had  it  been  otherwise  than  that  I  was  thoroughly 
imbued,  and  obstinately  confident  of  the  correctness  of  the  principle, 
I  would  have  suiTendered  to  the  universal  clamor.  Having  the 
"  courage  of  conviction "  I  was  not  to  be  moved  by  appeals, 
ridicule,  or  the  conjectures  of  people,  many  of  them  being  as  igno- 
rant of  what  they  talked  so  leax'nedly  about  as  if  they  had  never 
seen  a  horse.  Others  had  strong  arguments,  that  is,  when  the  guide 
is  previous  opinions.  Not  one  of  them  had  tested  the  difference 
between  slioes  and  tips,  and  consequently  their  reasoning  was  })urely 
theoretical.  It  is  also  true  that  on  my  part  I  could  not  say  authoi-i- 
tatively  that  Anteeo  would  not  trot  faster  with  full  shoes,  as  that 
was  something  he  had  never  worn  on  his  fore  feet ;  but  from  all  those 
that  I  had  tried  the  change  upon  trotting  faster  with  tijis  than  when 


108  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

wearing  shoes,  the  inference  was  that  he  would  not  be  an  exception. 
The  objectors  who  presented  the  most  logical  reasoning  based  their 
arguments  upon  his  action. 

He  has  very  little  "  action,"  when  that  term  is  used  to  express 
bending  of  the  knee  and  hock.  He  is  rather  a  "  short  strider,"  and 
when  going  at  3:30  gait  is  pi'one  to  hitch,  sidle  about,  swing  from 
one  side  to  another,  and  to  a  person  who  only  saw  him  when  jogging 
he  would  convey  the  impression  that  he  was  unlikely  to  make 
a  fast  trotter.  When  going  fast  he  moves  as  squarely  as  it  is  pos- 
sible for  a  horse  to  trot ;  and  the  only  thing  I  would  care  to  remedy 
is  the  shortness  of  stride.  It  certainly  appeared  reasonable  to  expect 
that  more  weight  on  the  front  feet  would  remedy  this,  and  it  also 
seemed  that  toe-weights  would  be  beneficial.  I  tried  weights  on 
diflferent  occasions,  and  he  would  not  trot  so  well,  excepting  in  one 
instance  which  will  be  given  hereafter.  In  order  to  fully  understand 
his  case  it  will  be  necessary  for  me  to  recite  other  peculiarities.  He 
was  foaled  where  I  reside,  in  Oakland,  and  I  have  the  use  of  a  lot  of 
about  an  acre.  He  and  his  dam  occupied  the  lot  without  other  com- 
pany. The  colored  boy  alluded  to  before  was  continually  petting 
him,  and  so  much  did  he  think  of  the  colt,  that  he  would  permit  him 
to  bite  and  play  with  him  without  correction.  Before  he  was  weaned 
it  was  unsafe  to  go  into  the  lot  without  a  whip  or  stick  to  keep  him 
off.  It  was  not  much  trouble  to  break  him  to  harness,  though  from 
the  first  he  was  stubborn,  and  severe  punishment  made  him  more 
determined  in  his  obstinacy. 

This  was  partly  inherited,  partly  the  result  of  familiarity  between 
the  boy  and  Anteeo  when  a  foal.  The  inheritance  came  from  Bonnie 
Scotland,  who  the  English  writers  say  was  the  most  sluggish  horse 
in  his  exercise  ever  trained  in  England.  I  bred  and  owned  two  colts  by 
Bonnie  Scotland  which  had  the  same  disposition.  They  were  brothers, 
and  the  elder  was  completely  spoiled  by  severity  ;  the  younger,  who 
was  treated  with  invariable  kindness,  outgrew  the  obstinacy  and  be- 
came free  and  pleasant.  The  elder  was  one  of  the  fastest  horses  I 
ever  saw,  running  a  quarter  of  a  mile  in  twenty-three  seconds  in  his 
training  shoes  and  with  his  weight  up,  and  apparently  could  go  any 
distance.      Severe  punishment  resulted  in  utter  worthlessness,  either 


AN    INCORRIGIBLE.  109 

to  run  or  drive,  as  when  broken  to  harness  it  was  impossible  to  drive 
him  away  from  home  at  any  other  pace  than  a  slow  walk,  although 
when  turned  to  come  back  he  would  trot  at  a  three-minute  clip.  If 
whipped  going  away  from  home  he  would  stop.  If  given  a  sharp 
blow  as  he  was  coming  back  he  would  kick  with  terrific  vengeance. 
From  that  experience  I  knew  that  it  would  not  answer  to  punish 
Anteeo  ;  and  though  there  was  a  perfect  deluge  of  advice,  the  gen- 
eral purport  of  which  was  severity  to  the  pitch  of  cruelty,  I  treated 
it  the  same  as  that  to  replace  the  tips  with  shoes,  and  kept  my  own 
course.  That  this  has  been  correct  is  apparent,  as  in  the  last  few 
weeks  he  has  taken  an  inclination  to  go,  and  I  have  the  fullest  confi- 
dence that  hereafter  there  will  be  no  more  trouble  with  him  on  that 
score. 

It  is  necessary  to  be  made  acquainted  with  this  j^eciiliarity  of 
temperament  in  order  to  understand  fully  why  he  would  show  at 
times  a  flight  of  speed,  and  then  in  his  races  and  at  other  periods  not 
trot  within  ten  seconds  as  fast.  That  presented  in  so  brief  a  man- 
ner, I  will  take  up  the  discourse  from  the  time  Mr.  J.  watched  the 
setting  of  the  tips.  He  was  not  driven  from  early  in  November, 
1881,  to  Januaiy  28,  1882,  and  then  only  occasionally  to  a  heavy 
breaking-cart,  genei-ally  on  the  road.  Until  May  25th  he  was  driven 
to  a  lighter  cart,  part  of  the  time  on  the  track,  with  fast  work  once 
in  a  while.  The  lighter  cart  will  probably  weigh  1 30  jK>imds  or 
more,  having  elliptic  springs,  and  beiiig  strong  enovigh  to  carry  two 
men.  On  the  25th  of  May  he  was  hitched  to  a  sulky  the  first  time 
since  he  trotted  in  the  Embryo  the  November  before.  The  tips  had 
varied  in  weight  from  three  ounces,  those  that  were  worn  by  use,  to 
seven  ounces,  the  heaviest  I  had  made ;  usually  five  ounces  or  six 
were  the  weight  of  those  used. 

In  the  meantime  I  tried  a  difierent  shoe  on  the  hind  foot,  a 
description  of  which  will  be  given  in  the  Appendix. 

On  the  31st  of  May  I  commenced  galloping  X  X  with  him,  in 
order  to  encoui-age  him  to  go  along  without  so  much  urging,  and 
from  that  time  his  fast  woi-k  was  in  company  with  the  galloper. 
June  7th  commenced  working  him  "  two-and-two,"  finding  that  he 
was  more  inclined  to  trot  the  second  mile  than  the  first.      Tliis  kind 


110  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

of  work  was'kept  up,  and  on  June  15th,  "on  the  repeat,"  he  trotted 
the  two  miles  in  5:20 — the  last  mile  in  2:38.  On  June  27th  gave 
him  three  heats  of  two  miles,  the  last  mile  of  each  being  2:40,  2:39;^, 
2:38|.  The  first  mile  of  each  heat  I  drove  him  as  fast  as  I  could, 
but  2:41  was  the  fastest,  and  that  in  the  third  heat.  Being  so  busy 
on  account  of  the  work  incidental  to  the  publication  of  The  Breeder 
and  Sportsman,  I  did  not  drive  him  again  until  the  17th  of  July,  his 
only  work  being  jogging  to  the  cart  by  the  man  who  took  care  of 
him.  July  27th  I  put  new  tips  on  him,  weighing  six  ounces  each, 
and  on  the  29th  is  the  following  entry  in  the  journal :  "  Jogged 
Anteeo  three  miles  to  cart,  hitched  him  to  sulky  and  then  gave  him 
three  miles  at  a  good  pace,  moving  in  places  fast.  Scraped  and 
repeated  him  two  miles  in  5:25,  moving  through  two  stretches  in  37 
seconds  each.  After  the  work  he  played  coming  home."  On  the  1st 
of  August  he  finished  a  strong  drive  of  three  miles  by  trotting  the 
home  stretch  in  37  seconds,  which  proved  that  the  work  thi-ee  days 
before  had  not  been  detrimental.  On  the  3d  of  Auo-ust  he  was 
attacked  with  the  "pinkeye."  This  disease  practically  laid  him  up 
until  September  16th,  although  he  was  worked  occasionally,  which  I 
am  satisfied  was  an  error.  The  sickness  prevented  him  trotting  in  the 
Occident  Stake  at  the  State  Fair.  On  the  26th  of  Sei)tember  we 
resumed  the  two-mile  work,  endeavoring  to  prepare  him  for  the  Stan- 
ford Stake.  The  swelling  between  his  jaws  suppurated  and  broke  a 
few  days  before  that  race  was  trotted. 

In  the  race,  when  "  wanning  up,"  after  going  at  a  good  pace,  he 
trotted  half  a  mile  in  1:1 6|-,  and  a  quarter  in  36^>  seconds,  and  yet 
he  was  beaten  in  2:34i,  2:36|,  2:40,  2:38.  The  cause  of  this 
I  will  endeavor  to  explain  after  a  few  more  illustrations.  The 
Stanford  Stake  was  trotted  the  21st  of  October,  on  the  Bay  Dis- 
trict Course  ;  on  the  25th  he  was  brought  home,  and  on  the  Oakland 
track  I  gave  him  three  heats  of  two  miles,  in  the  last  of  which  he 
trotted  the  second  mile  in  2:36.^,. 

On  the  30th  I  drove  him  three  heats  of  a  mile  as  fast  as  I  could, 
scraping  him  between  the  heats.  After  this  I  gave  him  a  heat  of 
two  miles,  and  he  trotted  the  last  mile  in  2:30-|.  The  fastest  first 
mile  I  could  drive  him  up  to  this  time  was  2:39^.     He  made  a  poor 


A    TRIAL   WITH    TOE-WEIGHTS,  111 

showing  in  the  Embryo  Stake,  but  on  November  26  the  following  is 
the  record  in  the  journal :  ''  In  the  afternoon  I  drove  Anteeo. 
Jofffred  to  track  and  two  miles  on  it  to  the  cart.  Hitched  him  to 
the  sulky,  X  X  galloping  to  anotlier.  Went  two  rounds  of  the 
track  the  reverse  way,  the  last  at  a  good  rate,  then  turned  and  gave 
him  a  mile  in  2:45.  Slight  scrape  and  rejieated  him  in  2:41.  Again 
scraped  lightly,  and  after  scoring  a  few  times,  drove  him  a  mile,  with 
a  break  soon  after  starting,  in  2:35.  Keeping  on,  the  timers — James 
Garland,  George  Palmer  and  Johnson — timed  from  the  quarter-pole, 
the  last  three-quai-ters  in  1:54  ;  and  as  the  first  quai-ter  was  as  fast 
as  the  others,  that  mile  was  probably  made  in  2:32."  On  December 
5th  he  trotted  the  last  mile  of  the  third  heat  in  2:34^.  One  more 
illustration  will  be  sufficient.  After  strong  work  from  the  4th  until 
the  12th,  I  determined  to  again  try  him  with  toe-weights;  though  on 
pi-evious  occasions  he  did  not  trot  as  well.  On  the  21st  of  Novem- 
ber three-quarter  shoes  were  put  on  his  hind  feet,  at  that  time  weigh- 
ing seven  ounces,  and  on  the  4th  of  December  I  put  on  tips  of  five 
ounces  each.  By  the  12th  the  hind  three-quarter  shoes  would  not 
weigh  over  five  ounces,  as  when  jmlled  off  a  short  time  afterwards 
they  were  reduced  to  three  and  a  half  ounces.  He  was  thus  rigged  : 
Ordinary  walking  or  ankle  boots  all  around.  Quarter  boots,  weigh- 
ing four  and  three-fourth  ounces  each,  on  his  fore  feet,  and  toe- 
wei-T-hts  of  three  and  three-fourth  ounces  each.  Thus  there  were 
about  thirteen  ounces  on  each  fore  foot,  allowing  for  the  eight  days' 
wear  in  the  tip.  Contrary  to  the  previous  custom,  he  was  driven 
alone.  Walked  to  the  track,  nearly  one  mile,  harnessed  to  the 
sulky,  jogged  two  miles,  the  reverse  way,  moved  up  the  homestretch, 
around  the  turn  and  half  way  down  the  homestretch.  When  turned 
he  seemed  to  want  to  trot ;  none  of  his  usual  stubbornness  or  mean 
actions.  He  made  the  first  quarter  in  38|  seconds,  went  to  the  half 
mile  in  1:15-^  and  the  mile  in  2:311  I  never  drove  him  a  mile  so 
easily,  never  touching  him  with  the  whip  or  moving  the  bit  in  his 
mouth.  On  the  8th  I  drove  him  three  heats,  the  slowest  in  2:42: 
and  on  the  9th  he  was  worked  sharply  for  three  miles, 'and  trotted  a 
heat  asrainst  Bonnie  and  Fi-ed  Arnold. 

The  opponents  of  tips  have  laid  great   stress   on  the  trotting  of 


112  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

Auteeo,  and  I  have  given  this  long,  and,  it  may  be  considered, 
tedious  account,  in  order  that  there  may  be  a  proper  understanding 
of  the  case.  In  the  first  place,  for  a  colt  foaled  May  5th,  1879,  and 
with  so  disjointed  a  schooling  as  the  record  shows,  it  may  be  con- 
sidered a  very  fair  rate  of  speed.  To  take  the  maximum,  2:30-^,  and 
it  is  more  than  a  fair  showing  for  a  three-year-old,  if  even  the  edu- 
cation had  been  better  managed.  Had  the  tips  been  so  detrimental 
as  is  claimed,  so  diametrically  opposed  to  speed,  there  never  would 
have  been  a  display,  and  slow  time  would  have  been  shown  at  every 
trial. 

There  could  not  be  soi-eness,  as  the  harder  Anteeo  worked  the 
faster  he  trotted.  Intervals  of  rest  invariably  added  many  seconds 
to  the  mile,  and  fast  quarters,  halves  and  miles  were  made  at  the 
finish  of  long  heats.  And  now  for  the  explanation  of  the  erratic 
exhibition,  and  the  causes  why  the  second  mile  would  be  faster  than 
the  first,  and  the  greater  the  number  of  the  heats  the  greater  the 
increase  in  the  speed.  When  fresh  he  wanted  to  rebel.  In  that 
situation  he  was  determined  to  resist  the  attempts  to  urge  him  to 
more  rapid  movements,  and  anything  like  severe  castigation  resulted 
in  a  still  stronger  will  to  thwart  the  driver.  When  he  became 
wearied — not  so  tired  as  to  prevent  him  from  trotting — the  obstinacy 
gave  way,  and  then  he  was  willing  to  go  along.  When  he  trotted 
the  half  mile  in  1:16^  at  the  Bay  District  he  had  been  driven  two 
miles  as  fast  as  I  could  work  him  along,  and  if  it  had  been  permis- 
'  sible  to  move  once  around  the  track,  and  then  get  the  word,  he  would 
have  made  a  good  performance.  The  mile  in  2:31  J-  on  the  12th  of 
December,  so  contrary  to  all  his  previous  actions,  I  ascribe  to  the 
weights  distracting  his  attention  at  that  time,  when  in  the  prior  failui'es 
the  same  effect  did  not  follow.  Then  there  is  a  manifest  improve- 
ment in  his  disposition,  of  which  that  may  have  been  the  forerunner. 
He  has  become  more  docile  in  the  stable  ;  or,  more  properly,  not  so 
mischievous.  Heretofore  he  seemed  to  have  an  idea  that  men  were 
playmates;  that  it  was  all  right  to  jump  on  them,  give  them  a  nijjor 
run  against  them,  just  as  a  colt  is  likely  to  play  with  another.  Until 
the  last  few  months  he  could  not  be  led  in  hand  without  constant 
threatening  him  with  a  whip,  and  so  I  fixed  a  strong  piece  of  bamboo 


REGENERATION.  113 

with  a  snap  in  the  end  of  it  to  keep  him  off.  When  in  his  box  he 
had  the  same  inclination — not  a  particle  vicious,  as  his  countenance 
would  indicate  good  nature,  but  ready  for  a  frolic  at  eveiy  oi)portu- 
nity.  The  bamboo  had  to  be  used  to  snap  into  his  halter-ring,  and 
the  halter  I  fixed  so  that  the  bridle  could  be  put  on  and  the  halter 
removed  afterwards.  This  was  effected  by  a  buckle  on  the  nose- 
band ;  and  it  also  gave  the  opportunity  to  replace  it  before  the 
bridle  was  removed.  Without  this  precaution  he  would  try  to  catch 
the  person  bridling  him  by  the  leg,  exactly  similar  to  the  action 
of  a  colt  when  playing  with  another.  This  mischievousness  doubt- 
less came  from  the  plays  with  the  boy  when  a  suckling,  and  the 
endeavor  lo  i-emedy  it  by  such  severity  as  people  advised  would  have 
resulted  in  confirmed  vice. 

At  the  pi-esent  time  he  is  as  sedate  as  need  be.  Comes  to  the  call 
of  his  attendant  in  the  stable,  and  will  walk  as  decorously  as  a  quiet 
mare.  That  there  is  a  change  as  well  in  his  disposition  as  in  other 
respects,  is  apparent,  and  I  feel  quite  confident  that  he  is  a  different 
animal  in  still  more  important  respects.  I  drove  him  December 
1.5th,  and  from  that  time  he  has  been  exercised  on  the  road  by  his 
gi'oom.  On  the  IStli  of  this  month — January,  1883 — I  put  tips  on 
him  weighing  three  ounces  each,  his  hind  feet  bare.  On  the  21st, 
2 2d  and  23d  I  drove  him  to  the  track  in  the  light  cart,  having  put 
the  tliree  and  three-fourth  ounce  toe-weights  and  quarter-boots  on 
him,  and  for  the  first  time  in  his  history  I  could  move  him  through 
the  stretch  after  jogging  him  a  couple  of  miles.  He  not  only  would 
go  through  the  stretch,  but  after  being  stopped  and  turned  around, 
he  would  strike  a  fast  gait  in  a  few  strides,  and  I  feel  confident  that 
he  never  trotted  faster.  Should  this  favorable  conduct  be  a  perma- 
nent regeneration  I  have  the  utmost  confidence  in  Anteeo  proving 
that  tips  can  be  carried  fast  at  a  trotting  gait.  Everyone  who  sees 
him  admits  that  his  legs  and  feet  could  not  be  in  better  condition, 
and  that  this  is  owing  to  his  foot  never  having  been  hampered  with 
a  shoe  I  implicitly  believe. 

While  the  history  of  Antevolo,  brother  to  Anteeo,  has  not  so 
direct  a  bearing  on  the  question  of  shoeing  as  that  of  the  older, 
there  is  still  a  lesson  that  is  proper  to  repeat  in  connection  with  the 


114  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

other  illustrations.  Antevolo  was  foaled  on  May  12tli,  1881,  his 
birth-place  being  the  celebrated  breeding-farm,  Palo  Alto.  He  came 
all  right,  and  the  first  time  I  saw  him,  May  19th,  I  considered  that 
he  was  as  good-looking  and  as  well-formed  a  colt  as  I  had  ever  seen 
in  a  trotting-bred  one.  He  ran  with  his  dam  on  the  foothills,  and 
was  so  full  of  life  and  play  that  he  was  continually  gallojiing. 

There  being  a  good  deal  of  gravel  and  hard  ground,  he  wore  his 
feet  away,  the  near  one  being  so  badly  broken  that  the  toe  and  part 
of  the  sole  were  worn  entirely  through.  The  foot  was  so  sore  that  he 
could  not  touch  it  to  the  ground,  and  he  either  went  on  three  legs  or 
walked  on  the  front  pai-t  of  the  ankle  joint.  It  appeared  as  though 
it  would  be  an  act  of  mei'cy  to  kill  him,  but  Frank  Covey,  knowing 
how  highly  he  was  valued,  gave  him  every  attention. 

There  was  quite  an  improvement ;  though,  when  he  was  brought 
home,  December  21,  1881,  it  was  the  opinion  of  every  one  who  saw 
him  that  he  would  be  entirely  worthless  for  anything  but  a  stock 
horse. 

The  foot  had  certainly  a  bad  appearance.  The  horn,  in  place  of 
having  a  natural  angle  at  the  toe  from  the  coronet,  inclined  in  the 
wrong  direction,  so  that  the  toe  was  nearly  on  a  straight  line  with 
the  cannon  bone.  Tliough  the  heel  was  very  high,  it  did  not  touch 
the  ground,  and  there  was  an  enlai'gement  above  the  coronet  like  a 
ringbone,  excepting  that  it  was  restricted  to  the  front.  The  day  after 
he  came  home  I  c\^t  the  horn  away  at  the  heel  until  it  was  no  higher 
than  the  frog,  and  when  clearing  away  the  horn  at  the  toe,  which 
was  turned  under,  overlapping  the  sole,  the  blood  poured  ou.t  in  a 
stream,  and  I  then  discovered  that  for  a  space  of  at  least  two  inches 
there  was  a  gap  half  an  inch  in  width  between  the  sole  and  the  wall. 
In  outwai'd  appearance  there  was  very  little  resemblance  to  a  natural 
foot.  The  toe  was  straight  across  without  any  curvature,  and  the 
wall  on  each  side  where  it  came  to  the  ground  was  also  straight.  At 
the  coronet  the  heel  was  abnormally  wide. 

When  the  foot  was  pared  I  drew  the  outline  of  it  by  holding  a 
piece  of  paisteboard  against  the  sole,  as  he  could  not  stand  on  it;  and, 
when  returned  to  hi^  stall,  he  limped  back  on  the  other  legs,  holding 
that  one  yp. 


A    PROJECTING   TIP.  115 

My  intention  was  to  make  a  tip  that  would  project  as  much  at  the 
toe  as  would  make  the  bearing  the  same  as  if  the  foot  were  natural, 
but  after  seeing  the  state  of  his  foot,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  it 
would  not  do  to  attempt  putting  anything  on  it  that  I'equired  nailing. 
I  made  a  boot  something  like  a  "  soaking  boot,"  but  I  did  not  use  it, 
restricting  the  attention  to  keeping  the  foot  clean.  On  the  5th  of  Jan- 
uary T  applied  the  biniodide  of  mercury  prej)aration  to  the  coronet. 
The  14th  of  Januaiy  I  again  cut  away  the  horn  at'  the  heel,  and 
turned  him  in  the  small  lot  for  an  hour  or  two,  and  this  was  con- 
tinued daily  until  the  26th,  when  I  repeated  the  blister.  This  treat- 
ment was  continued,  and  it  was  apparent  that  the  blister  was  not 
only  reducing  the  enlargement  but  also  stimulating  the  growth  of 
the  horn.  By  the  29th  of  March  there  was  such  a  decided  improve- 
ment that  I  concluded  to  commence  his  education,  and  led  him  by 
the  side  of  X  X,  and  the  entry  in  the  joui-nal  at  that  date  is  :  "  He 
astonished  me  at  his  readiness,  tlie  first  time  he  was  ever  led  by  the 
side  of  a  horse,  and  at  the  trotting  gait  he  exliibited.  He  is  a  trot- 
ter sui'ely."  I  led  him  three  times,  but  fearing  that  it  was  too  soon 
to  take  chances  of  the  foot  becoming  sore  again,  he  ran  in  tlie  lot 
part  of  the  time  until  the  15th  of  May,  when  the  harness  was  put 
on  him,  and  after  becoming  accustomed  to  it,  by  wearing  in  his 
stable  for  some  days,  he  was  driven  without  any  vehicle.  On 
the  24th  of  May  he  was  hitched  to  the  breaking-cart,  and  on  June 
5th  he  was  driven  to  the  track  for  the  first  time,  and  on  the  8th  he 
trotted  quarters  in  59  and  59^  seconds.  On  the  11th  of  June  he 
was  fourteen  hands  and  half  an  inch  high  ;  on  the  14th  he  trotted  a 
quarter  in  54  seconds ;  the  26th  he  made  the  same  distance  in  50 
seconds.  There  is  no  necessity  for  giving  his  work  and  performances 
in  detail,  fui"ther  than  to  state  that  he  also  had  the  pinkeye,  which 
threw  him  out  for  a  time,  and  owing  to  the  same  causes  which  pre- 
vented me  from  driving  Anteeo,  he  was  still  moi*e  neglected.  At 
the  Golden  Gate  Fair  he  won  the  pui'se  for  yearlings,  trotting  in 
3:07;  and  in  the  Embryo  he  was  second  to  Dawn,  trotting  in  3:02; 
the  time  of  the  winner  2:59.  Since  then  have  driven  him  quarters 
in  421  and  43  seconds,  a  half  mile  in  1:28,  and  in  all  these  instances 
he  was  barefooted.     I  felt  that  he  might  trot  faster  with  tips  on  his 


116  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

front  feet,  and  at  one  time  thought  that  I  would  be  compelled  to  put 
on  three-quarter  shoes  behind,  as  he  was  inclined  to  strike  the  coro- 
net and  needed  the  protection  of  "  scalping  boots."  I  found  a 
method,  however,  of  fastening  these,  at  times,  necessaxy  adjuncts, 
and  I  was  loth  to  change  the  treatment  which  had  proved  to  be  so 
beneficial.  The  ailing  foot  is  now  nearly  as  perfect  as  the  other,  and 
I  have  the  utmost  confidence  that  in  another  year  it  will  be  entirely 
right.  All  that.it  lacks  is  a  trifle  of  the  roundness  of  its  mate,  and 
few  who  are  not  aware  of  the  previous  ailment  notice  the  difference. 

But  the  rainy  weather  compelled  driving  on  the  macadamized 
streets,  and  there  being  some  wear  at  the  toe,  two  weeks  ago  (Janu- 
ary 13)  I  put  tips  on,  weighing  three  ounces  each.  The  next  day  I 
drove  him  on  the  track,  and  I  thought  he  showed  a  forty  gait,  though 
the  sharp  edge  of  the  tips  wounded  the  hind  pastern  above  where  the 
scalping  boot  came,  and  after  that  he  was  inclined  to  hitch.  A 
"  speedy  cut "  attachment  remedied  that,  but  again  the  rain  came, 
and  I  have  not  driven  him  since.  The  Turf,  Field  and  Farm,  com- 
menting on  the  use  of  tips,  and  referring  to  me  driving  Antevolo 
barefooted,  asked  the  questions  which  follow: 

"  From  this  (a  statement  of  the  trotting  of  Antevolo)  it  will  be 
seen  that,  notwithstanding  his  advocacy  of  tips,  Mr.  Simpson  trotted 
his  own  colt,  on  at  least  two  occasions,  '  barefooted '  and  '  without 
shoes,  tips  or  weights.'  Has  he,  too,  found  that  tips  will  not  answer] 
If  not,  why  did  he  not  use  them  on  the  occasions  referred  to  ? " 

These  questions  are  answered  by  the  short  history;  though,  if  no- 
thing had  been  the  matter  with  the  feet,  the  experiment  was  worth 
trying,  and  if  thei'e  had  been  soft  roads  to  drive  upon  I  would  have 
carried  it  further.  I  have  not  the  least  doubt  that  Antevolo  would 
have  been  capable  of  beating  2:40  in  his  two-year-old  form  if  still 
kept  barefooted,  and  with  a  very  good  chance  to  trot  a  good  deal 
faster  than  that.  Whilie  I  claim  a  decided  superiority  for  tips  over 
the  full  shoe,  I  am  not  prepared  to  say  that  the  foot  can  be  kept  as 
perfect  as  when  without  anything  upon  it.  Still,  however,  as  tips 
are  the  nearest  approach  to  a  barefooted  condition,  the  benefits  of  the 
latter  can  be  rendered  available  as  nearly  as  the  duties  of  domestica- 


ANTITHETONS.  117 

tion   will   permit.     Therefore  the  success   of  this  barefooted  colt  is 
additional  proof  that  "  tips  will  answer." 

Before  lea\'ing  the  history  of  these  two  colts  I  may  be  pardoned 
for  diverging  from  the  subject  under  consideration  to  call  attention 
to  the  "glorious  uncertainty"  attending  the  breeding  of  horses. 
These  two  brothers  are  in  many  respects  entirely  different.  In  form, 
the  elder  is  immensely  powerful  all  over.  Quarters,  gaskins,  loin, 
shoulders  and  arms  are  covered  with  masses  of  muscle,  and  bone  and 
tendons  are  in  proportion.  His  legs  are  short,  and  he  stands  squarely 
upon  them  at  all  times.  He  is  almost  a  fac  simile  of  his  sire,  though 
his  head  and  neck  are  larger,  and  he  has  rather  more  length.  He  is 
a  trifle  over  15^  hands,  still  growing,  and  when  mature  will  probably 
be  an  inch  taller.  The  younger  has  more  quality,  "  rangier,"  head 
and  neck  as  line  as  a  thoroughbred,  lighter  limbs  and  smaller  feet. 
He  is  15|  hands  now,  at  least  two  inches  taller  than  his  bi-other  at 
the  same  age,  and  he  has  grown  4|  inches  since  the  11th  of  June, 
and  is  likely  to  be  16  hands  befoi-e  the  1st  of  January  next,  and  while 
he  still  ranks  as  a  two-year-old.  This  growth  also  proves  that  the 
work  was  not  a  di-awback. 

The  younger  has  more  knee  action  and  a  longer  stride.  But  the 
greatest  difference  is  in  the  disposition.  That  of  Antevolo  could 
not  be  improved.  There  is  not  a  point  I  would  care  to  change  ; 
he  is  as  "level-headed"  as  an  old  campaigner,  and  nothing 
throws  him  off  his  balance.  The  Berkeley  railway  runs  within 
a  few  feet  of  the  northern  turn  of  the  Oakland  track.  In 
the  Embryo  trot  the  train  was  met  when  at  the  nearest 
point.  Dawn  made  a  few  jumps  and  I  must  acknowledge  that 
I  was  in  hopes  that  he  would  act  badly  so  that  I  could  pass 
him.  Antevolo  looked  at  it  for  a  second  and  kept  trotting  his  best, 
never  leaving  his  feet  for  the  whole  mile.  He  is  free  and  full  of 
spirit,  a  chirrup  sending  him  along  while  a  word  will  restrain.  He 
is  a  model  road  horse,  never  shies,  and  goes  with  the  vim  of  an  old 
horse.  He  reminds  me  of  his  grandsire,  A.  W.  Eichmond,  and  still 
more  of  his  great  grandsire,  old  Blackbird.  The  mischievousness  of 
Anteeo  undoubtedly  resulted  from  the  petting  when  a  colt,  and  this 
trait  may  have  led  to  his  stubbornness  as  well.     Still,  as  it  was  a  pe- 


118  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

culiarity  of  Bonnie  Scotland,  and,  as  I  have  shown,  of  some  of  his 
colts,  it  is  likely  that  there  was  an  inherited  tendency  in  that  direction 
which  might  have  remained  latent  under  better  management.  The 
maternal  grandam  of  these  colts  was  Columbia  by  Bonnie  Scotland 
and  she  was  a  grandaughter  of  Fashion  by  imported  Trustee.  Thus 
the  thoroughbred  predominates  on  that  side  of  the  house,  and  their 
action  is  that  of  the  thoroughbred.  As  one  has  done  fairly  well  with 
tips,  the  other  stUl  better  barefooted,  the  inference  is  just  that  weight 
is  not  necessary  for  that  kind  of  a  gait,  notwithstanding  that  such  is 
the  general  opinion  of  experts. 


CHAPTER  XIIL 

English  Ideas  of   Horse-Shoeing  —  Tips  and  Charlier  Shoes, 


Having  preserved  a  few  copies  of  the  Field,  the  great  English 
authoi-ity  in  matters  pertaining  to  breeding  domestic  animals,  stable 
management,  etc.,  containing  short  articles  on  shoeing,  with  the  in- 
tention of  incorporating  them  in  "  Tips  and  Toe-Weights,"  a  portion 
of  them  is  given  here.  These  were  published  in  January  and  Feb- 
ruary, 1881,  and  the  views  in  places  are  so  similar  to  those  which 
we  made  public  some  seven  years  ago,  that  it  was  veiy  gratifying  to 
find  them  con'oborated.  The  Charlier  method  is  simply  an  improve- 
ment on  the  Goodenough  system,  which  the  author  introduced  into 
England  nearly  twenty  years  ago,  the  improvement  consisting  of  re- 
stricting the  metal  to  the  width  or  rather  thickness  of  the  wall  or 
crust  of  the  hoof,  and  using  a  much  lighter  shoe.  Then  it  is  put  on 
with  a  much  greater  degree  of  nicety,  the  horn  only  bekig  cut  away 
where  the  metal  takes  its  place. 

Should  there  be  any  necessity  for  a  full  shoe,  this  is  assuredly  a 
better  plan  than  incumbering  the  foot  with  a  load  of  iron,  unless 
there  is  proof  that  weight  on  the  heel  is  a  requisite  for  fast  trotting. 
Although  we  are  not  yet  prepared  to  say  authoritatively  that  weight 
is  not  needed  on  the  posterior  portion  of  the  foot,  all  of  the  experi- 
ments so  far  have  led  to  the  belief  that  it  can  be  dispensed  with. 
Thei-e  may  be  horses  which  will  be  benefited  by  weight  on  the  pos- 
terior part  of  the  foot,  and  if  so,  a  properly  made  bar-shoe  will  be 
the  kind  to  use.     We  are  satisfied  that  the  bar,  or  round  shoe,  owes 


120  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

whatever  merit  there  is  in  it  to  the  pressure  on  the  frog ;  when  this 
is  effected  more  in  accoixlance  with  nature,  there  is  a  greater  gain. 

The  Chai'lier  is  superior  on  account  of  its  near  approach  to  a 
natural  state,  the  whole  thing  being  in  replacing  so  much  of  the  wall 
with  a  harder  material.  That  it  cramps  the  heel,  is  also  apparent, 
though  far  less  than  the  ordinary  shoe.  The  following  article  is  from 
the  Field  of  February  5th,  1881  : 

During  tl^e  last  fortnight  of  Arctic  weather  the  state  of  the  Lon- 
don streets  has  been  a  subject  of  interest  to  all  and  sundry,  whether 
they  walk  or  drive.  Various  feeble  efforts  have  been  made  with  the 
object  of  giving  foothold  to  the  unlucky  horses  whose  mission  it  is 
to  drag  heavy  weights  over  a  surface  whose  quality  of  material  varies 
in  about  eveiy  other  street.  Hei-e  we  find  a  shovelful  of  ashes  ;  anon 
we  splash  into  a  '•'  freezing  mixture "  (vide  Lancet)  of  salt  ;  next 
small  curling  stones  (called  by  courtesy  gravel)  are  sent  sj^inning 
along  the  frozen  surface  by  the  foot  which  they  are  supposed  to 
benefit.  Now,  there  is  no  sort  of  reason  why  horses  should  not  be 
able  to  ti-avel  over  the  streets  in  safety,  whatever  may  be  their  con- 
dition. It  is  merely  a  question  of  rational  shoeing.  In  the  ordin- 
ary mode  of  "roughing"  a  hoi'se,  the  heels  of  his  shoe  are  turned 
.up,  and  his  foot  is  thereby  prevented  from  sliding  forwai'd  on  ice, 
consequently  he  can  stop  or  even  back  his  load ;  but  when  he  wishes 
to  start,  and  in  pursuance  of  his  intention  attempts  to  dig  his  toes 
into  the  ground,  his  feet  fly  from  him  in  every  direction,  and  he 
either  falls  heavily,  or  escapes  that  fate  by  sheer  good  luck.  Tlie 
antidote  to  this  evil  is  simple  enough,  and  why  it  is  not  universally 
applied  is  a  puzzle  to  me.  One  would  think  that  the  numerous 
veterinary  forges  of  London  ought  amongst  them  to  be  able  to  shoe 
a  horse  for  frosty  weather;  but,  judging  from  results,  the  contrary 
appears  to  be  the  case. 

The  whole  secret  of  traveling  over  ice  may  be  expressed  in  thi'ee 
words,  viz.:  "Rough  the  toe."  A  catch  at  the  toe  of  each  foot  is 
perfectly  effective.  With  three  such  catches,  one  at  the  toe,  and  one 
at  each  heel,  a  horse  is  independent  of  weather.  Snow  will  ball  in 
a  foot  so  shod  ;  but  in  towns  that  is  seldom  a  very  serious  consider- 
ation, as  when  it  balls  it  is  more  or  less  in  a  state  of  thaw,  and  as  a  con- 


TIPS    ON    SADDLE-HORSES.  121 

sequence  disappearing  ;  while,  if  it  be  very  deep,  the  balling  does  not 
much  matter.  Snow  will  under  no  circumstances  ball  in  a  foot  shod 
with  a  leather  sole,  nor  in  a  foot  shod  with  a  short  tip,  it  being  the 
heels  of  the  shoe  that  perfect  this  undesirable  manufacture.  In  the- 
ory the  catch  at  the  toe  may  be  objected  to,  as  being  likely  to  make 
the  horse  stumble.  In  practice  it  has  not  that  effect,  as  all  the 
horses  in  Canada  can  testify.  These  remarks  apply  to  harness  and 
draught  horses,  whose  toes  are  bound  to  come  to  the  gi-ound  every 
time  they  start  their  load.  Saddle  horses  take  a  sufficiently  firm 
hold  of  the  ground  with  short  tips  in  front ;  and  the  hind  shoes  should 
have  a  catch  rather  on  the  outside  of  the  toe,  to  obviate  danger  of 
tread  and  overreaches. 

Omnibus  horses  should,  in  common  with  all  others  who  drag  heavy 
Aveights  on  slippery  stones,  let  alone  ice,  have  the  toe  of  the  hind 
shoe  square,  and  a  broad  catch  to  it,  the  toe  of  the  hoof  projecting 
in  front.  The  Midland  Railway  Company  shoe  their  cart  horses 
thus,  and  with  the  best  results.  When  the  foot  is  brought  up  "  all 
standing"  by  a  toe  calk,  "there  it  is!"  When  by  calkins  at  the 
heel,  the  back  sinew  is  too  often  strained.  The  observant  will  see 
on  cab  ranks  many  horses  whose  heels  behind  do  not  touch  the 
gi'ound  at  all ;  this  contraction  of  the  sinews  is  the  result  of  the 
above  form  of  sprain.  My  brother  sportsmen  miast  have  pei-sonally 
experienced  the  difference  between  catching  the  toe,  and  the  heel,  of 
their  shooting  boot  upon  an  unexpected  obstacle.  A  few  moments' 
discomfort,  and,  with  the  possessoi-s  of  ill-i-egulated  minds,  a  possible 
malediction,  see  them  through  the  first  casualty ;  while  the  loss  of  a 
day's,  or  of  several  days'  sport,  may  be  the  consequence  of  the  latter. 
Hunters  in  this  sort  of  weather  are  on  the  straw  ride  ;  but  if  shod 
with  short  tips,  they  may  go  anywhere  on  the  roads. 

We  have  lately  heard  a  great  deal  about  working  horses  without 
shoes,  but  the  writers  on  this  subject  have  been  almost  to  a  man 
theorists.  If  anyone  had  given  his  own  experience,  his  testimony 
would  have  been  interesting,  not  to  say  valuable.  "  Free  Lance  " 
appears  never  to  have  practiced  what  he  preaches  in  his  book, 
"  Horses  and  Roads,"  although  one  of  his  con-espondents  used  a 
barefooted  pony.     One  gentleman  wrote  to  the  Daily  Telegraph  to 


/ 


122  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

the  effect  tliat  he  drives  a  barefooted  horse  eight  miles  daUy.  Now, 
I  know  by  exiDerience  that  light  work — say  eight  or  nine  miles 
daily — may  be  done  by  a  barefooted  horse,  supposing  his  feet  to  be 
good  hard  ones ;  but  that  is  mere  exercise.  Work  is  another  thing. 
In  no  known  part  of  the  globe  are  horses  able  to  work  unshod,  at 
any  rate  in  front,  on  hard  ground.  In  ancient  times  slippers  were 
worn  by  horses  and  mules  before  shoes  were  invented.  The  want, 
though  not  supplied,  made  itself  felt. 

Nowadays  we  hear  a  great  deal  of  South  American  horses,  Indian 
ponies  and  the  like.  As  a  matter  of  fiict  these  unshod  horses  in- 
habit districts  where  they  never  encounter  a  stone.  Put  them  to 
work  on  rocky  ground,  and  they  are  either  shod  or  lamed.  A  friend 
of  mine,  lately  returned  from  America,  tells  me  that,  though  the 
horses  were  unshod  on  the  plains,  when  a  march  over  rocky  ground 
(the  Andes,  for  example)  was  contemplated,  the  same  horses  were 
shod  with  a  shoe  of  raw  oxhide.  These  shoes  last  about  a  week,  by 
which  time  the  mountains  are  generally  crossed,  and  the  soft  plains 
regained.  Pack  mules  seldom,  if  ever,  require  this  protection  to 
their  feet ;  but  even  with  them  exceptions  exist  to  prove  the  i-ule. 
And  apropos  of  barefooted  steeds,  I  may  observe  that  they  decidedly 
slip  more  on  greasy  ground  with  a  hard  substratum  than  horses  with 
shoes  or  tips.  A  barefooted  horse  is  far  moi'e  pleasant  to  ride,  to 
my  mind,  than  a  shod  one — so  long,  that  is  to  say,  as  he  can  go 
comfortably ;  but  I  do  not  know  that  he  is  more  pleasant  than  when 
shod  with  light  tips.  I  have  not,  howevex-,  given  a  fair  trial  to  tips 
behind,  although  I  mean  doing  so,  as  what  experiments  I  have  ven- 
tured on  have  been  satisfactory. 

To  return  to  the  insecure  foothold  of  the  bare  foot.  Example  : 
In  the  beginning  of  the  present  season  I  was  riding  a  horse  out 
hunting  with  no  shoes  behind  at  all.  The  day  was  pouring  wet 
after  a  spell  of  dry  weather  ;  the  country,  an  ex-rural  provincial. 
My  troubles  began  at  a  bank,  my  horse's  hind  feet  flying  somewhere 
under  his  girths,  and  landing  him  on  his  tail,  in  luckily  so  trifling 
a  ditch  that,  although  we  emerged  with  a  most  unbecoming  scramble, 
we  did  emerge  without  dissolution  of  partnership.  I  tried  to  con- 
sole myself  with  the  thought  that  my  flier  had  a  soul  above  cramped 


TIPS    ON    HUNTERS.  123 

banks  and  ditclies  ;  but,  shortly  afterwards,  in  crossing  a  common  at 
best  pace,  where  the  other  horses  all  slipped  about  very  much,  my 
steed  suddenly  came  on  to  the  floor  bodily,  and  worse,  on  to  my  leg, 
his  hind  legs  ha\TDg  again  gone  from  under  him.  And  this  sort  of 
thing,  having  gone  on  in  a  modified  form  all  day,  sefme  to  think- 
ing. As  aforesaid,  the  ground  was  hard  below,  and  very  gi'easy 
atop.  The  horse  is  a  flat-footed  one,  and  this  was,  of  course  "against 
him,"  as  the  phrase  goes. 

Hunters  shod  with  shoi-t  tips  go  so  much  better  through  dirt  than 
when  they  wear  full  shoes,  that  I  am  compelled  to  believe  that  their 
heels,  being  free,  expand  on  coming  to  the  ground,  and  contract 
when  the  time  comes  for  dragging  them  out  of  holding  clay,  etc.  I 
have  not  been  troubled  with  an  oven-each  since  I  have  used  tips,  and 
fancy  that  the  fore  foot  gets  more  quickly  out  of  the  way  of  the  hind 
ones  when  thus  shod. 

Nimshivich  asks  {Field,  Jan.  22)  :  "What  is  the  condition  of  frog 
which  enables  one  horse  to  go  with  a  five-inch  tip,  and  another  only 
with  the  whole  shoe  ] "  The  answer  is,  that  a  thrushy  frog,  if  badly 
diseased  and  in  a  state  of  inflammation,  is  in  too  tender  a  state  to 
vnthstand  stones,  etc.;  and  I  once  knew  a  case  in  which  the  sensitive 
frog  was  all  but  exposed,  the  horny  frog,  or  what  thrush  had  left  of 
it,  being  worn  down.  The  animal,  a.  four-year-old  mare,  very  soon 
recovered,  and  had  sound  frogs  until  a  railway  accident  destroyed 
her  at  six  years  old.  All  sound  horses  will  go  sound  in  short  tips  ; 
but  they  will  not  thump  their  feet  down  with  the  action  so  dear  to 
London  coachmen,  as  if  they  wished  to  penetrate  the  pavement  with 
their  legs.  They  will  use  their  knees  less,  but  their  shouldei'S  more. 
Thus  shod,  I  have  never  had  an  instance  of  a  horse  breaking  his 
knees  on  the  road,  with  one  exception,  and  he  slipped  on  a  piece  of 
ice  when  being  led  at  exercise.  His  shoes  were  full  Charliers,  and 
he  broke  his  knees  through  his  kneecaps.  Had  he  had  tips,  I  think 
he  would  have  stood  up.  The  full  Charlier  shoe  is  not  such  a  safe- 
guard against  slipping  as  the  tip,  which  puts  the  heels  as  well  as  the 
frog  on  the  ground.  Now,  I  must  disagree  with  "  Nimshivich's ' 
friend  as  to  our  forefathers  being  experts  in  shoeing.  The  very  old 
English  shoe,  worn  by  the  "  destriers  "  (which  we  should  call  cart- 


124  TIPS   AND   TOE-WEIGHTS. 

horses)  that  carried  the  knights  of  okl,  was  ckimsy  in  the  extreme. 
Its  great  width,  however,  allowed  some  pressure  to  the  sole,  which 
was  so  far  good,  as  experience  shows  that  an  unpared  sole  can  stand 
pressure.  I  can  only  account  for  the  horses  of  our  grandfathers 
standing  work  at  all,  shod  as  they  were,  firstly,  by  their  being  nearer 
to  their  Arab  ancestors,  and  consequently  more  sound  in  themselves 
than  our  horses ;  and  secondly,  by  the  custom  of  turning  them  out 
to  grass  on  every  available  occasion.  They  lost  condition,  went 
broken- winded,  etc.;  but  their  feet  had  a  chance,  or  rather  nature 
had  a  chance  of  restoring  their  feet ;  and,  all  the  world  over,  there 
is  nothing  like  dew  and  night  air  for  anything  like  fever  in  the  feet. 
Harness  horses  had  no  weight  on  their  backs ;  those  belonging  to 
rich  men  were  not  unreasonably  worked ;  the  mail  coach  horses 
did  their  stage  in  the  allotted  time,  and  the  number  of  legs  which 
they  used  in  progression  was  optional  with  them.  In  many  ways 
our  horses  have  certainly  deteriorated,  and  in  nothing  more  than  in 
unsoundness  of  wind. 

The  fii"st  cart-horse  I  ever  heaixi  roaring  caused  me  to  turn  round 
and  make  a  mental  note  of  the  circumstance.  Now  I  often  hear 
them,  and,  more  remarkable  still,  last  summer  a  pony  of  the  polo 
description  cantered  by  me,  roaring  like  Prince  Charlie  himself. 

The  greatest  errors  in  the  matter  of  shoeing  history  are  to  be  found 
in  veterinaiy  works  of  a  compai-atively  late  date — say  sixty  years 
ago.  What  countless  horses  have  been  ruined  by  the  theory  about 
the  descent  of  the  sole  !  Our  gi-eat-grandfathers  and  gi-andfathers 
had  plenty  of  horses  lamed  by  tbeir  shoeing,  but  they  ascribed  the 
lameness  to  every  cause  but  the  light  one.  Chronic  laminitis  they 
called  "  chest  founder,"  and  many  a  horse  lame  in  his  feet  was  tor- 
tured by  having  his  legs  fired  and  blistered.  Nor  is  all  that  practice 
quite  changed  in  the  present  day,  though  much  improved.  To  return, 
however,  to  the  descent  of  the  sole.  Youatt,  in  "  The  Horse,"  page 
418,  says  that,  unless  the  sole  be  pared,  "that  portion  of  horn  which 
in  the  unshod  foot  would  be  worn  away  by  contact  with  the  ground, 
is  suffered  to  accumulate  until  the  elasticity  of  the  sole  is  destroyed, 
and  it  can  no  longer  descend,  and  foundation  is  laid  for  corns,  con- 
traction and  navicular  disease  I "     Fancy  a  man  calling  himself  a 


ERROR    IN    PARING    THE    SOLE.  125 

director  of  public  opinion  about  horses,  and  not  knowing  that  the 
sole  never  attains  more  than  a  certain  thickness,  whether  it  be  on 
the  gi'ound  or  not !  When  thick  enough  it  scales  away,  leaving  a 
new  sole  ready  for  any  emergency  below  it.  The  sole,  being  pared, 
required  protection,  and  could  not  even  be  touched  by  the  shoe. 
Hence  the  necessity  for  the  foot  surface  being  beveled  off,  and  hence 
contracting  corns  and  navicular  disease. 

I  do  not  say  (because  I  don't  know  it)  that  a  horse  shod  with  tips, 
and  having:  his  frog  as  Natui^e  made  it,  would  never  have  navicular 
disease,  but  it  stands  to  reason  that  he  has  the  best  chance  possible 
of  escaping  it.  Firstly,  he  minds  where  he  is  putting  liis  feet,  and 
does  not  bang  them  recklessly  about;  secondly,  the  thick  horny  frog 
shields  the  navicular  bone  and  perforans  tendon. 

Otterbourne  asks  how  Charlier  shoes,  in  front  only,  answer  1  I 
reply,  very  well ;  but  I  prefer  the  nearest  approach  to  nature  all 
round,  excepting  for  hoi'ses  drawing  heavy  loads,  and  they  have  been 
discussed  above.  With  the  old-fashioned  way  of  shoeing,  only  feet 
of  medium  quality,  neither  too  strong  nor  too  weak,  had  any  chance 
of  standing  sound.  Without  shoes,  sooner  or  later,  all  horses  really 
worked  on  the  hard  will  be  lame.  With  tips,  all  horses  can  do  all 
reasonable  work,  excepting  those  suffering  from  navicular  disease. 
Tips  will  not  make  lame  horses  sound  at  once  ;  but  they  give  many 
diseases  of  the  foot  the  best  possible  chance  of  righting  themselves, 
especially  if  the  owner  of  the  horse  possesses  the  quality  of  patience. 
Last  season  I  owned  a  mare  who  had  such  thin  feet  that  she  could  do 
nothing  at  all  barefooted  on  the  road.  With  short  tips,  however, 
she  had,  if  anything,  rather  too  much  action  for  a  hunter.  At 
present  I  have  a  horse  whose  heels  are  quite  on  the  ground ;  yet  he 
goes  better  like  this  than  he  did  with  full  shoes.  Tips  are  no  new 
notion.  The  "  lunette  "  shoe  of  Lafosse  was  a  tip.  I  do  not  think 
tips  need  be  veiy  narrow,  unless  they  are  let  in  a  la  Charlier.  The 
heels,  however,  should  always  be  beaten  down  quite  thin.  Clips  are 
most  useful  in  keeping  light  shoes  or  tips  in  their  place  ;  but  they 
should  on  no  account  have  a  place  cut  out  for  them  in  the  horn.  Let 
them  just  be  hammei-ed  on  the  outside  of  the  crust.  Also  let  the 
clinches  be  cut  off  and  knocked  down,  but  not  rasped,  as  the  crust  is 


-^ 


126  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS, 

rasped  with  them,  and  a  chance  is  given  to  the  nails  to  break  out. 
Let  the  sole  and  frog  be  on  no  account  touched  with  a  knife.  Shorten 
the  toe  as  much  as  possible  on  the  occasion  of  each  shoeing,  with  a 
rasp.  And  above  all,  "  gentle  reader,"  if  you  don't  happen  to  be 
master  in  your  own  stable,  never  let  the  words  "  Charlier,"  "  tip," 
or  "nature"  escape  your  lips.  If,  however,  you  are  not  a  slave  to- 
your  groom,  my  experiences  may  be  of  use  to  you,  and  in  any  case 
are  very  much  at  your  service. 

P.  S. — The  above  remarks  having  been  delayed  in  transmission,  I 
take  advantage  of  the  oppoi-tunity  to  add  some  more  last  words,  and 
to  make  some  remarks,  which  I  hope  will  not  be  considered  imperti- 
nent, on  the  letters  written  by  various  gentlemen  in  re  Horse  Shoes 
which  appeai-ed  in  last  week's  Field.  First,  Waverly,  who  was  per- 
suaded out  of  the  Charlier  system  by  his  farrier,  says  that  I  take  for 
gi-anted,  for  reasons  which  I  do  not  attempt  to  explain,  that  grooms 
and  smiths  are  opposed  to  Charlier  shoeing.  I  speak  from  expe- 
rience, as  all  the  grooms,  excepting  two,  with  whom  I  have  ever  dis- 
cussed the  subject,  are  opposed  to  it,  for  "  reasons  which  they  do  not 
attempt  to  explain."  As  to  smiths,  no  less  than  four  of  them  have 
refused  to  shoe  my  horses  at  all  on  this  principle ;  they  have  all  been 
owners  of  superior  forges.  I  never  had  my  horses  better  shod  than 
by  a  village  blacksmith  who  did  what  he  was  told ;  but  even  he 
charged  me  2s.  per  set  more  fortijjs  even  than  for  the  old  heavy  shoe! 
I  may  say  as  regards  Waverly,  Be  te  fabula  narratur,  as  Mr.  Far- 
dons  speaks  his  own  sentiments.  Had  "Waverly  persevered  with  the 
shoeing,  the  discolored  horn  would  have  grown  and  been  worn  out ; 
his  horses,  not  being  lamed  by  the  oi'iginal  bruise,  would  not  have 
been  lamed  later  on,  any  more  than  mine  were. 

I  agree  with  M.  B.  that  Charlier  shoes,  not  approaching  the  corn 
place,  cannot  cause  corns,  any  more  than  a  gag  snaffle  could  give  a 
sore  back.  I  should  like,  however,  to  know  whereabouts  the  soles 
of  his  horses  were  worn  unduly  thin,  as  the  frog  of  a  flat  foot,  being 
always  prominent,  sliields  the  part  "  aft  "  of  the  point  thereof,  and 
the  shoe  should  protect  the  forward  part,  it  being  as  impossible  as 
undesirable  to  have  the  shoe  in  a  very  flat  foot  flush  with  the  sole. 
Is  M.  B.  quite  sure  that  the  soles  were  in  a  natural  condition  ?     He 


INFINITESIMAL     TIPS.  127 

says  he  never  lias  tlie  frog  touched  with  a  knife  ;  but,  if  not  abso- 
lutely watched,  smiths  will,  under  tlie  pretense^of  removing  "ragged 
dead  hom,"  thin  the  sole.  I  am  curious  on  this  subject,  as  last  sea- 
son I  possessed  a  hunter  with  absolutely  pummiced  soles,  which  im- 
proved immensely  in  the  three  months  that  I  owned  him,  one  foot 
regaining  the  normal  appearance,  although  in  both  the  coffin  bones 
had  descended  when  I  bought  him,  as  a  stop  •  gap  and  as  an  expei'i- 
ment.  I  much  regretted  that  I  parted  with  him,  but  a  severe  acci- 
dent was  accountable  for  that.  Capt.  Gillon  is  of  my  way  of  think- 
ing. "Would  he  tell  us  whether  the  material  for  shoes  which  he 
mentions  is  procurable  in  England  1  He,  like  myself,  has  given  the 
system  a  fail*  trial. 

Suaviter  in  Modo  also  agrees  with  me,  for  his  harness  shoe  is  the 
modified  Charlier,  with  which  I  have  shod  many  thin-soled  horses 
until  the  sole  grew  thick.  Apropos  of  his  remarks  on  curby  hocks, 
I  may  say  that  several  years  ago  I  bought  a  remarkably  clever  young 
Irish  mare,  fired  for  curbs,  and  with  curbs  which  appeai-ed  callous. 
At  the  end  of  a  season  of  Charlier  hind  shoes,  the  enlargements  were 
absorbed  ;  and  I  sold  her  to  a  dealer  at  the  end  of  the  next.  Finally, 
Mr.  Gr.  Johnson  is  specially  happy  in  his  remark,  that  in  most  forges 
"  the  quantity  of  iron  employed  far  exceeds  that  of  common  sense." 
To  turn  from  this  well-worn  subject  to  a  fresh  one,  will  H.  H.  kindly 
tell  me  whether  his  hunters  can  eat  Goode's  luncheon  cake  out  hunt- 
ing with  a  double  bridle  in  their  mouths  1  I  find  that  I  must  make  one 
more  remark  on  these  weary  shoes.  Suaviter  in  Modo  misunder- 
stands me  as  regaixls  three  nails  only  to  a  shoe.  I  use  three  nails  in 
the  tips,  of  which  I  have  given  a  sketch  (there  is  hardly  room  for 
more),  and  it  was  to  these  infinitesimal  tips  only  that  I  referred. 

HORSE-SHOEING THE  CHABLIER    V.  THE  OLD  SYSTEM. 

Sir, — The  views  expressed  by  W.  J.  R.  in  your  recent  issues  much 
according  with  experiences  which  I  have  derived  fi-om  an  eight  years' 
practical  use  of  the  Charlier  system,  carried  out  under  my  own  per- 
sonal supervision,  it  may  not  be  uninteresting  to  consider  the  question 
by  the  application  to  it  of  governing  principles ;  for  after  all  there 


128  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

must  be,  and  there  is,  a  reason  for  everything.  For  this  purpose  let 
us  see,  in  the  first  place,  of  what  does  the  horse's  foot  consist ;  then 
the  reasons  for  applying  shoes  to  it  at  all ;  then  how  far  the  old  sys- 
tem and  that  of  the  Charlier  effect  the  objects  desired  ;  and,  finally, 
the  weight  of  advantage  and  of  disadvantage  attending  upon  each  of 
those  systems. 

The  foot  of  the  horse,  then,  may  roughly  be  said  to  be  constructed 
of  a  series  of  sensitive  and  insensitive  stratifications,  the  one  alter- 
nating with  the  other ;  the  semi-circular  outside  wall  or  crust,  the 
outside  sole,  and  the  outside  frog,  being  naturally  of  the  insensitive 
kind,  whilst  the  inner  semicircular  crust  or  wall  ("  lamina ")  the 
inner  or  underlying  sole,  and  the  inner  or  underlying  frog,  are  of  the 
sensitive — indeed,  veiy  acutely  sensitive  kind.  This  foot,  as  it  is 
illusti-ated  with  the  unshod  and  still  unimpaired  colt,  is  strong  and 
elastic,  but  solid  and  without  concavity,  the  well-used  and  developed 
elastic  frog  filling  up  all  the  centre  of  the  foot,  and  by  its  wedge-like 
operations  preventing  the  possibility  of  any  contraction  at  heel,  whilst 
it  also  fully  performs  its  valuable  functions  as  "bufier,"  intended  by 
nature  for  the  relief  of  the  joints  of  the  limb  from  jar,  and  the  foot 
itself  from  concussion,  as  the  result  of  striking  the  hard  ground  with 
rapid  action. 

This  elastic  insensitive  outside  frog  is  also  given  to  the  horse  that 
he  may  have  a  foothold  upon  hard  and  smooth  surfaces, -as  I  have 
seen  to  demonstration  in  the  case  of  unshod  horses  carrying  heavy 
burdens  in  safety  over  rocky  tracks  in  the  Himalaya  mountains,  where 
a  shod  horse  could  not  have  even  put  in  an  appearance  and  carried 
himself;  and  as  I  have  also  had  experience  upon  the  flat  surface  of 
Cheapside,  when  neither  wet  nor  dry.  It  is  also  quite  clear  that  the 
unshod  horse  must  be  vastly  less  liable  to  sprain  his  back  sinews,  the 
developed  and  projecting  insensitively  elastic  frog  constituting  a 
wedge  of  support  to  a  vertical  pressure  upon  the  pasterns,  and  thus 
minimising  the  consequent  leverage  upon  the  back  sinews.  There 
can  be  no  doubt  that  this  insensitive  outside  frog  is  highly  and  sensi- 
tively accumulative,  or  the  reverse;  cleanliness  and  exposure  to 
healthful  pressure,  and  of  that  the  more  the  better,  producing 
growth,   resulting  in  its  full  development;    whilst  its  withdi-awal 


MOTIVES   FOR   SHOEING.  129 

from  tliis  healthful  pressure,  aided  by  dirt,  will  as  quickly  result  iu 
its  shrivelled  proportions;  and  even,  indeed,  in  its  absolute  disap- 
pearance— when,  of  course,  contracted  heels  are  also  an  inevitable 
consequence.  These  evils,  however,  as  we  have  seen,  cannot  fall  to 
the  lot  of  the  typical  colt,  when  at  lai'ge  on  his  pasturage ;  although 
they  may,  and  do,  happen  to  him  also  when  kept  for  any  length  of 
time  in  a  dirty  straw-yard,  and  thus  deprived  of  his  natural  contact 
with  his  own  mother  earth. 

What,  then,  are  our  motives,  it  may  be  asked,  in  applying  shoes 
at  all  where  the  typical  colt  is  thus  seen  to  go  as  daintily  and  gi'ace- 
fully  unshod  as  do  the  peasant  girls  of  the  south  and  west  of  Ireland, 
and  also  in  ma.ny  other  (for  the  present,  at  least)  haj^pier  countries 
familiar  to  many  of  us  1  The  answer  is  quickly  given — that  the 
colt's  earlier  career  does  not  require  that  he  should  pei-form  rapid 
pilgrimages  on  roads  strewed  with  sharply  angular  and  artificially 
broken  stones,  which  would  otherwise  risk  the  occurrence  of  either 
of  two  kinds  of  injury— the  one  being  the  breaking  away,  splitting 
or  tearing  of  the  outside,  insensitive,  protecting  wall  of  the  foot,  and 
exposui'e  of  the  inside  sensitive  wall  or  "  laminae,"  as  might  be  exem- 
plified by  the  breaking  of  one  of  our  own  finger-nails  to  the  quick ; 
the  other  injury  to  which  he  would  be  liable  being  caused  by  the 
descent  of  his  foot  with  force  upon  one  of  such  sharp  stones,  and  the 
consequent  bruising  of  the  underlying  sensitive  sole,  the  outside  in- 
sensitively protecting  sole  having  proved  itself  an  insufiicient  shield 
for  its  protection  against  so  unnatural  an  assailant. 

In  answer  to  the  question  of  how  the  colt  is  to  be  protected  from 
either  or  both  of  these  misfortunes — both,  as  we  have  seen,  proceed- 
ing from  dissimilar  causes — I  i^eply  that  the  remedy  will  depend  upon 
the  position  in  life  it  is  intended  that  he  shall  occupy.  If  to  race, 
hunt,  or,  in  a  word,  to  "  carry  a  saddle,"  then  I  unhesitatingly  say, 
by  shoeing  him  on  the  Charlier  system — a  narrow  rim  or  moulding 
of  steel  protecting  the  insensitive  outside  crust  and  maintaining  its 
semi-circular  formation  intact  as  well  as  a  clumsy  appendage  of  iron, 
and  without  its  manifest  disadvantages ;  and,  as  he  will  be  free  to 
choose  his  own  ground  when  traveling  by  I'oad,  he  requires  no  pro- 
tection from  the  second  kind  of  injury  already  referred  to.     If,  on 


130  TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS, 

the  other  hand,  his  destiny  should  be  fast  harness  work,  to  be  per- 
formed on  roads  still  unvisited  by  a  steam  roller,  and  where  (especi- 
ally in  double  harness)  he  is  powerless  to  choose  his  own  gi-ound,  then 
I  have,  by  unpleasantly  gained  experience,  learnt  that  the  Charlier 
system  does  not  afford  the  necessary  protection,  and  that  it  is  desir- 
able to  use  a  shoe  of  the  old  type,  with  a  bearing,  however,  restricted 
to  the  outside  insensitive  crust  only,  a  flatly  projecting  flange  extend- 
ing to  the  inside  of  the  semi-circle,  the  unimpaired  and  developed  frog 
having  still  a  bearing  in  the  centre  almost  flush  with  the  flange  or 
flat  web;  a  knife  being  in  no  case  applied  either  to  frog  or  sole,  and 
the  desired  diminution  of  length  of  toe  being  effected  by  a  rasp,  as 
we  should  file  the  ends  of  our  own  finger-nails. 

The  advantage  of  the  Charlier  system  to  that  class  of  hoi-ses  first 
referred  to,  and  also  to  driving  horses  where  steam  rollers  are  in 
voo-ue  (and  at  times  of  year  when  country  roads  are  not  in  a 
state  of  chronic  reparation),  is  that  they  are  light,  ensure  frog  pres- 
sure with  its  consequent  development,  and  therefore  wide  and  open 
heels,  freedom  from  windgalls,  dimunition  of  risks  of  fetlock  cutting, 
brushing,  speedy-cutting,  and  tendon  and  joint  straining;  the  foot, 
with  the  addition  of  a  steel  rim  or  moulding  to  preserve  its  integrity, 
being  in  all  other  respects  in  the  same  condition  as  that  of  our  happy 

colt solid  instead  of  ^lollow,  and  therefore  free  from  the  risks  of 

picking  up  stones,  of  shoe-pulling  through  suction  in  deep  rides  through 
clay  coverts,  when  the  familiar  sounds  of  "  cork- drawing  "  are  in  the 

air. 

"Impecunious"  observes  that  farriers  are  opposed  to  the  Charlier 
system — the  reason  for  which,  however,  are  by  no  means  hard  to  find, 
for  it  requires  more  delicacy  of  workmanship,  more  care  and  time — in 
fact,  the  services  of  a  more  skilled  artisan ;  the  modus  operandi  being 
first  to  rasp  away  the  extra  length  of  toe  which  had  gi'own  during 
the  inteiwal  between  the  last  shoeing  or  removal,  as  may  be  (and 
which  in  the  case  of  the  colt  would  have  been  constantly  and  regu- 
larly kept  back  by  fnction  of  the  toe  against  the  ground),  then  to 
lower  the  groove  in  the  insensible  outside  crust  to  its  proper  level, 
and  then — that  which  is  the  real  difficulty— to  adjust  the  steel  shoe 
with  perfect  accuracy  to  the  form  of  the  foot  and  groove,  before  a  nail 


NECESSITY    FOR    NAILING.  131 

can  be  driven;  whilst  in  the  old  system  it  was  only  necessai-y  that  he 
should  turn  a  ponderous  mass  after  some  standard  pattern  of  his  own 
conception,  which  a  few  slashes  of  his  knife  sufficed  to  make  the 
obsequious  but  sufterii^  hoof  conformable  to.  It  is  also  to  be  borue 
in  mind  that  the  Charliei'  shoe,  being  composed  of  steel,  involves 
much  more  wear  and  tear  of  the  tools  used  in  its  construction,  espe- 
cially of  the  rasp  used  in  bevelling  off  its  shai-p  inside  edge.  Assum- 
ing, however,  that  this  shoe  is  put  on  by  a  man  acquainted  with  the 
construction  of  the  hox^se's  foot,  with  the  hammer  concentrated  in 
width  of  surface  bearing  to  the  insensible  semicircular  crust  only, 
and  that  the  heels  are  not  curved  inwards  and  drawn  too  long,  it  is 
physically  impossible  that  such  a  shoe  could  cause  corns.  One  of 
your  correspondents  suggests  that  in  certain  instances  the  Charlier 
shoe  should  be  fastened  on  by  three  nails  only,  in  order  to  avoid  risks  of 
lameness  from  using  more ;  but  I  confess  that  I  am  at  a  loss  to  see 
any  reason  for  it,  as  the  fewer  the  nails  used  the  greater  must  be  the 
strain  upon  each ;  and  beside  there  is  practically  a  necessity  for  nail- 
ing the  shoe  at  pretty  short  intervals,  because  if  the  horse  do  road 
work  and  have  not  unusually  perfect  shoulders,  the  toe  of  the  shoe 
quickly  wears  thin,  allowing  the  heels  to  expand  beyond  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  foot  to  which  they  had  been  originally  adjusted,  where 
such  parts  of  the  shoe  are  not  i-iveted  in  their  original  positions  by 
the  nails. 

When  upon  the  subject  of  the  old  system — which  under,  the  cir- 
cumstances referred  to,  would  appear  to  be  the  better  system  for  car- 
riage horses  driven  over  stony  roads — I  have  made  no  Allusion  to  the 
barbarous  and  cruel  application  of  "  heel  cocks,"  as  it  is  self-evident 
that  if  the  principles  of  the  Charlier  system  possess  no  more  virtue 
than  that  which  is  involved  in  the  mere  question  of  superiority, 
which  has'led  to  expressions  of  opinions  by  your  correspondents,  such 
appendages  must  needs  be  wrong,  and  that  beyond  any  question. 
Much  has  been  well  said  and  written  against  the  cruelty  of  bearing 
reins,  and  with  happy  results  ;  but  if  any  of  your  readers  should  doubt 
the  cruelty  practiced  upon  a  London  carriage  horse,  let  him  turn  into 
any  one  of  the  fashionable  West-end  forges,  ask  for  an  ordinary  hind 
shoe,  such  as  is  kept  in  stock  for  carriage  horses,  lay  it  on  the  ground, 


132  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

and  see  the  angle  at  which  it  necessitates  its  unlucky  bearer  to  stand 
and  move  upon  it,  without  reprieve  to  its  distorted  tendons  except 
when  lying  down — ^the  altitude  of  the  outside  "  heel  cock  "  being 
about  double  that  of  the  inside,  and  the  weight  of  the  animal  distrib- 
uted equally  between  the  unequal  points  of  the  one  and  the  other, 
with  the  point  of  the  heel  for  a  tripod.  Of  frog  there  is  none 
remaining,  and  therefore  it  is  out  of  the  question,  of  course. 
Some  say:  Very  true  in  general,  but  my  horse  has  "  curby  hocks," 
and  thei-efore  requires  these  "heel  cocks"  ai'tificially  to  support  them. 
I  say,  certainly  not.  On  the  conti-ary,  knock  off  the  heel  cocks, 
lower  the  shoe  at  the  toe,  as  much  as  nature  will  permit,  allow  the 
frog  to  receive  pressure  from  the  ground  and  gradually  to  come  on 
the  scenes  again;  the  tendons  will  meantime  readjust  themselves 
and  assume  their  natural  proportions,  the  animal  becomes  at  ease, 
and  a  sound  and  actively  elastic  frog  will  amply  supply  the  rest. 

SUAVITER  IN    MODO. 
HOOFS    AND    SHOES. 

Sir, — That  science  has  made  great  strides  in  many  things  no  one 
■will  deny  ;  but  that  it  has  made  equally  great  progress  in  the  art  of 
shoeing  that  veiy  patient  slave  of  man,  the  horse,  no  one,  I  venture 
to  say,  will  admit.  The  manner  in  which  the  majority  of  horses 
are  shod  shows  too  plainly  that  the  quantity  of  iron  employed  far  ex- 
ceeds that  of  common  sense.  The  farrier  first  cuts  away  the  sole 
until  it  will  "  give  "  under  the  pressure  of  his  thumb,  and  then  nails 
on  a  broad  mass  of  iron  to  protect  it.  The  frog,  and  even  the  bars 
themselves,  do  not  escape  his  barbarous  knife :  for  he  no  sooner  finds 
that  they  have  grown  a  little  since  the  last  shoeing  than  to  work  he 
goes,  and  again  undoes  that  which  nature  herself  has  done.  But  let 
us  not  be  too  hard  on  the  much-abused  shoeing  smith,  for  he, often 
has  to  work  according  to  orders  from  the  man  in  charge  of  his  four- 
footed  friend,  who  will  not  be  satisfied  until  the  feet  look  like  so  many 
cockle  shells ;  pared  and  rasped  to  the  last  degree  is  his  plan.  Of 
course  they  look  "  clean  and  nice,"  and  that  is  about  the  only  explana- 
tion he  can  give  you  for  having  it  done.    No  wonder,  sir,  we  see  so  many 


WORK   WITH    NATURE.  133 

contracted  feet.  If  our  aim  is  perfection,  we  must  work  with  nature, 
and  not  against  her  ;  and  I  would  ask  any  man  with  a  grain  of  com- 
mon sense  if  the  above  method  is  in  harmony  with  the  rules  laid 
down  by  nature.  If  it  is  not,  then  I  say  the  sooner  we  discontinue 
such  an  idiotic  system  the  better  for  all  concerned.  Why,  let  me  ask, 
do  we  shoe  horses'  feet  at  all  ?  For  the  simple  reason  that  the  wear 
and  tear  of  the  crust  is  greater  than  the  growth.  It  is  then  with 
the  cinist,  and  the  crust  only,  that  we  have  to  deal  in  order  to  make 
a  horse  perform  his  allotted  task  without  injury  to  the  foot;  and  if 
we  can  do  that,  and  at  the  same  time  pi'eserve  the  same  even  bearing 
of  the  foot  which  it  possessed  in  its  natural  state,  I  think  we  shall 
then  have  arrived  as  near  perfection  as  any  reasonable  man  can  ex- 
pect. Well,  I  say  we  can  do  it  if  we  put  into  practice  Chai'lier's 
system ;  but  it  must  be  carried  out  to  the  very  letter,  otherwise  we 
shall  be  subject  to  disappointment,  and  apt,  like  many  othei's,  to  con- 
demn that  which  we  do  not  iinderstand.  I  have  before  me  a  hoof — 
or  rather  an  imitation  of  one — given  to  me  by  M.  Charlier  some 
twelve  years  ago,  showing  very  distinctly  how  a  foot  should  be  pre- 
pai'ed  and  shod  on  his  principle,  and  I  shall  be  pleased  to  show  it  to 
any  one  sufficiently  interested  to  inspect  it.  In  (conclusion,  let  me 
advise  those  who  are  prejudiced  against  his  system,  and  those  who 
have  never  tried  it,  first  to  get  well  acquainted  with  it  by  having  it 
properly  explained,  next  see  that  his  principle  is  can-ied  out  in  every 
detail  every  time  of  shoeing,  and  then  give  it  a  thorough  trial,  and  I 
am  convinced  that  they  will  be  more  than  satisfied,  and  regi-et  that 
they  did  not  try  it  sooner,  G.  Johnson. 

34,  Woods-mews,  Jan.  26. 

HORSE  SHOEING. 

Sir, — Will  you  allow  me  the  opportunity  of  collecting  "  Mus- 
tang's "  misapprehension  in  supposing  that  I  had  "  advocated  the  use 
of  many  nails,"  as  what  I  had  intended  was  to  state  the  necessity  for 
more  than  three  nails  in  fastening  on  a  full  Charlier  shoe,  in  contra- 
distinction to  the  "infinitessimal  tips"  only,  referred  to  by  "  Impecu- 
niosus "  "in   your   last  issue.     This  practical   necessity,    as   I   had 


134 


TIPS   AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 


previously,  but  no  doubt  inadequately,  endeavored  to  explain,  arises 
from  the  fact  that  the  closely  hammered  steel  Charlier  shoe,  with  road 
work,  quickly  wears  thin  at  the  toe,  when  its  tendency  is  to  spread 
out  at  the  heels ;  and,  unless  where  and  so  far  as  it  is  actually  held 
in  place  by  the  nails,  to  extend  towards  the  heel  beyond  the  dimen- 
sions of  the  hoof— with  the  consequent  danger  of  cutting  the  fetlock 
of  the  other  leg  in  action,  or  of  pulling  off  the  shoe,  by  offering  it  as 
a  projecting  flange  to  catch  and  hold  to  the  ground  when  the  horse 
takes  his  foot  out  of  dirt. 

1  also  tried  to  convey  my  opinion  that  there  is  no  disadvantage  in 
thus  using  any  reasonable  number  of  nails  for  the  purpose ;  and  I 
confess  that,  notwithstanding  "Mustang's"  explanations  that  the 
"  crust  is  composed  of  fibers  running  parallel  from  the  coronet  down- 
wax'ds,"  such  is  my  opinion  still.  For  in  the  same  way  our  finger 
nails  are  composed  of  fibers  running  parallel  from  the  quick  downwards; 
and  yet  the  quick  is  unaffected  by  the  number  of  small  holes  which  may 
be  carefully  drilled  into  the  projecting  ends,  so  long  as  they  do  not 
cause  splitting  or  injury  upwards.  The  Charlier  shoe,  being  itself  ex- 
cessively narrow,  necessitates  that  the  nails  used  in  fastenincr  it  on 
should  be  driven  correspondingly  near  to  the  edge  of  the  insensible 
semicircular  wall  or  crust— so  near,  indeed,  that  the  growth  of  a 
healtliy  hoof  enables  the  margin,  which  had  served  as  the  receptacle 
of  the  row  of  nails  at  one  shoeing,  to  be  altogether  done  away  with 
by  the  rasp  at  the  next  monthly  shoeing  or  removal,  as  the  case  may 
be.  But  as  I  have  already  intimated,  the  whole  system  of  the  Char- 
lier shoeing  involves  more  delicacy  of  manipulation,  and  a  finer  and 
more  highly  wrought  kind  of  nails  into  the  bargain. 

SUAVITER    IN    MODO. 


Sir, — Were  it  not  for  the  knowledge  that  your  liberality  in  open- 
ing the  columns  of  The  Field  to  such  an  extended  discussion  on 
horse  shoeing  has  been  attended  with  an  immediate  and  practical 
effect,  I  should  not  have  presumed  to  trespass  on  your  space  with 
another  letter  ;  but  as  I  am  aware  that  five  of  my  hunting  acquaint- 
ances are  having  their  horses  shod  a  la   Charlier,  and  that  three 


MISERABI.E   LIFE,    PREMATURE   DEATH,  135 

coiintiy  forges,  where  the  process  was  liitherto  unknown,  have  now 
the  necessary  appliances,  and  the  ownei"s  are  prepared  to  devote  their 
best  abilities  to  the  operation,  I  am  emboldened  to  send  you  some 
additional  remarks,  in  hojies  of  furthering  the  good  cause. 

It  seems  to  me  that  the  one  thing  needful  to  effect  a  complete 
chano^e  for  the  better  in  horse  shoeins;  all  over  Ena;land  is  that  vete- 
rinary  surgeons  should  take  and  express  gi-eater  interest  in  tlie  subject ; 
that  they  should,  in  fact,  disci'iminate  openly  and  strongly  between 
good  shoeing  and  bad,  between  shoeing  which  will  probably  enable  a 
hoi-se  to  remain  sound  in  his  feet  to  a  good  old  age,  and  that  which 
may  fairly  be  expected  to  render  his  life  miserable  and  his  death 
premature.  Few  men  can  doubt  that  if  veterinarians  were  generally 
convinced  of  the  truth  of  the  Charlier  system,  and  used  their  influence 
to  promote  its  adoption,  a  few  yeare  would  see  it  introduced  thi'ough- 
out  the  length  and  breadth  of  the  land.  Tliat  they  do  not  do  so  is 
not  necessarily  a  reproach  to  them;  there  may  be  inconveniences 
and  dangers  attendant  on  it,  of  which  outsiders  like  mj'-self  are  ignor- 
ant, but  which  are  fully  apparent  to  their  more  instructed  minds. 
What  sm-prises  me  is  that  they  should  not  give  us  a  hint  on  the 
subject. 

For  many  weeks  you  have  set  aside  a  large  amount  of  your  space 
in  order  that  horse-ownei-s  might  ventilate  this  question,  and  try  to 
arrive  at  some  conclusion  likely  to  benefit  tlie  most  generous  and 
courageous  of  all  animals;  but  not  one  single  useful  contribution 
has  emanated  from  a  member  of  the  veterinary^  profession.  If  it 
were  a  question  of  bad  water  or  bad  smells,  doctors  would  be  found  in 
plenty  to  tell  us  what  to  do;  but  the  sphinx  was  gaiTulity  itself  com- 
pared to  our  veterina,rians.  Surely  they  must  thoroughly  well  know 
whether  the  Charlier  system  is  good  or  the  reverse.  From  the  fiict 
that  certain  eminent  members  of  the  profession  have  written  approv- 
ingly of  it,  and  from  the  eagerness  with  which  one  or  two  of  your 
correspondents,  themselves  veterinarians,  have  hailed  its  inventor  as  a 
confrere,  one  would  suppose  they  regarded  it  as  entirely  good  ; 
yet,  can  any  horse-owner  remember  one  of  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
profession  advising  him  to  try  if?  I  certainly  cannot;  and  it  is  this 
prejudice,  indifference — call  it  what  you  will — on  the  part  of  so  many 


136  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

membei'S,  tliat  makes  me  consider  them  responsible  for  much  of  the 
cruelty  and  injury  daily  inflicted  on  horses  in  most  provincial  forges. 
They  have  no  right  to  seek  to  shelter  themselves  behind  the  honored 
names  of  professional  brethren  whilst  tacitly  conniving  at,  or  actively 
perpetrating,  mutilations  on  hoi'ses'  feet,  that  would  fill  with  horror 
the  men  whose  names  they  invoke,  and  which  their  own  knowledge 
and  reason  utterly  condemn. 

That  veterinians  may  be  stirred  up  to  a  more  active  interference  in 
this  impoi'tant  and  humane  question  is  my  only  object  in  writing 
this  letter ;  and  no  greater  mistake  can  be  made  than  the  supposition 
that  there  is  any  desire  on  my  part  to  deny  credit  to  the  eminent 
men  belonging  the  profession,  to  whose  investigations,  not  only  on 
this  but  on  many  kindred  subjects,  the  world  owes  so  much, 

"W.  J.  R. 


Sir, — W.  J.  R.  might  have  saved  himself  the  trouble  of  inditing 
last  week  his  little  treatise  on  sai'casm,  with  quotations  from  Arte- 
mus  Ward  and  Sydney  Smith  thrown  in.  Spite  of  being  handicapped 
by  my  nationality,  his  sarcasm  did  find  its  way  to  my  mind.  This, 
however,  in  no  way  necessitated  that  he  should  malign  himself,  if 
indeed  he  knew  better,  by  appearing  to  judge  of  a  horse's  foot-sound- 
ness whilst  it  was  going  across  country.  With  regard  to  the 
animals  involved  in  his  pettish  sarcasm,  I  may  state  that  I  never 
i-ode  better  hack-hunters  than  I  did  during  the  five  years  I  was  at 
Oxford,  and  do  not  recollect  more  than  two  occasions  on  which  I 
saw  a  lame  horse  out. 

"  Impecuniosus,"  M.  B.,  and  Mr.  Tozsr  agree  that  "  the  Charlier 
shoe,  not  approaching  the  corn  place,  cannot  cause  corns."  Neither 
can  any  other  shoe,  though  the  manner  of  shoeing  may  be  answer- 
able for  them,  inasmuch  as  it  may  cause  the  heels  to  contract  and 
lose  their  power  of  expansion.  The  concussion  is  greatly  increased, 
and  the  result  is  the  rupture  of  bloodvessels  in  the  sensitive  sole — 
that  is,  so-called  corns.  In  cases  of  weak  feet,  corns  ai-e  more  often 
produced  by  stepping  on  stones.  The  adoption  of  the  Charlier  would 
certainly  increase  danger  from  this  source  for  the  first  few  weeks, 
but  would  eventually  i-esult  in  a  healthier  foot,  I  have  no  doubt. 


TIPS   TO    BE   TRIED.  137 

Does  "  Frog  "  speak  from  personal  experience  when  he  says  that 
horses  are  worked  barefoot  abroad  ?  In  the  case  of  the  most  horse- 
loving  of  Continental  nations  I  'can  assert  the  contrary.  I  have 
visited  every  province  of  Austria,  and  found  the  horses  universally 
shod  with  a  fidl  shoe.  Hungarian  and  Polish  horses,  if  any,  should 
be  able  to  go  barefoot,  owing  to  the  practice  that  largely  prevails  of 
allowing  the  foals  to*^  I'un  alongside  while  the  dam  is  in  harness. 
Whilst  living  in  the  house  of  a  horse-breeder  in  Transylvania  I  have 
seen  two  mares  harnessed  to  the  conveyance,  and,  when  fairly  under 
way,  found  we  were  accompanied  by  six  young  colts  and  fillies,  from 
rising  one  to  rising  three  years  old,  each  of  the  matrons  claiming 
three  of  these,  with  the  prospect  of  sQon  increasing  the  number. 
With  a  view  to  testing  in  one  case  what  appears  to  be  still  a  theory, 
I  have  had  the  shoes  taken  off  one  of  my  nags,  a  thoroughbred  mai-e 
that  I  use  solely  for  hacking,  and  shall  try  the  effect  of  riding  her 
without  shoe  or  tip.  Borderer. 

HORSE    SHOEING. 

Sir, — With  your  permission,  I  will  endeavor  to  give  "  Mustang  " 
the  information  he  desires  respecting  the  imitation  hoof  shod  a  la 
Charlier,  by  forwarding  you  a  photo  of  the  same  which  I  have  just 
had  taken,  feeling  sure  that  "  Mustang  "  and  the  gentleman  from 
whom  I  have  received  letters  asking  for  particulars  will  be  able  to 
learn  more  from  it  (if  you  will  kindly  give  a  sketch  of  it)  than  from 
any  description  which  I  could  give  with  pen  and  ink.  I  may,  how- 
ever, remark  that  it  is  a  true  model  of  a  foot  shod  at  M.  Charlier's 
forge,  on  his  principle  for  six  months,  and  showing  how  well  devel- 
oped the  frog,  bars,  and  sole  will  become,  if  only  left  alone.  With 
a  strong,  thick  crust  the  shoes  may  be  shortened  a  good  inch,  and 
especially  when  a  horse  has  to  travel  over  slippery  roads.  Thus 
modified,  I  prefer  them  to  tips,  although  until  the  foot  has  attained 
something  like  its  natural  state,  I  am  a  strong  advocate  for  the  full 
Charlier  shoe,  which,  being  of  uniform  thickness,  and  with  the  groove 
made  deeper  at  the  toe  than  at  the  heel,  pi'eserves  the  latter  from 
undue    wear,    and    consequently   encourages    its  growth.       It    will 


138  TIPS    AND    TOE-WEIGHTS. 

be  seen  that  a  narrow  space  is  left  between  the  heel  of  the  shoe  and 
the  rim  of  uncut  crust  to  allow  of  expansion  of  the  foot  (a  most  essen- 
tial point),  and  it  is  in  neglecting  to  pi-ovide  for  sueh  expansion  that 
has  caused  many  to  form  an  unfavorable  opinion  on  what  they  took 
to  be  la  systeme  Charlier.  Now,  with  regard  to  tips,  by  all  that  is 
just  let  them  be  sunk  into  the  crust,  otherwise  you  destroy  that 
even  bearing  which  it  is  so  desirable  to  preserve.  No  matter  how 
thin  the  heels  of  the  tips  are  made,  there  still  remains  the  fact  that 
the  heel  is  not  level  with  the  toe.  How  can  it  be  1  The  whole 
circle  of  the  foot,  whether  shod  with  tips  or  full  Charliers,  should  be 
uniformly  level,  that  both  heel  and  toe  may  take  their  equal  share 
of  pressure  at  one  and  the  same  time.  It  is  nature's  own  law  ;  let 
us  not  try  to  improve  it,  or_  we  shall  be  losers  in  the  end,  depend 
upon  it. 

"When  I  see  a  set  of  shoes  weighing  nearly  twenty  pounds,  and 
with  sufficient  iron  in  the  calkings  to  make  a  decent  set  of  shoes,  I 
feel  ashamed  when  I  say  that  the  wearers  ai'e  to  be  found  in  this,  the 
greatest  "horsey"  country  in  the  world.  Depend  upon  it,  if  horses 
could  be  given  the  power  of  speech,  they  would  call  us  by  names 
which  were  not  given  us  at  our  baptism.  Then  away  with  calkings 
and  broad,  heavy  shoes,  and  let  us  give  the  poor  brutes  a  chance  of 
using  to  advantage  that  which  natui-e  has  given  them. 

"  Snaffle,"  in  last  week's  Field  asks  whether  there  is  anything  to 
prevent  the  crust  being  cut  to  receive  the  shoe  the  fii'st  time  of  shoe- 
ing. I  will  give  him  M.  Charlier's  plan.  When  he  had  a  strong, 
sound  foot  to  shoe  he  would  sink  the  shoe  level  with  the  inner  circle 
of  crust,  the  second  or  third  time  of  shoeing,  but  with  a  weak  one 
he  would  work  with  the  growth  of  the  foot.  As  it  improved  so 
Avould  he  lower  the  shoe  into  the  crust,  and  thus  by  degrees  bring 
the  sole,  bars,  and  frog  into  contact  with  the  ground.  Such  was  the 
plan  of  the  gi^eat  Chai-lier  himself,  with  whom  I  have  spent  many 
happy  hours,  for  he  was  never  tired  of  endeavoring  to  show  the 
superiority  of  his  system  over  every  other,  and  it  is  only  by  follow- 
ing in  his  footsteps  that  we  can  expect  to  arrive  at  anything  like 
perfection  in  the  art  of  shoeing.  It  would  be  interesting  to  know 
if  any  of  "  M.  B."  horses  "forge;"  if  so,  I  suspect  that  is  the  cause 


STILL    EXPERIMENTING.  139 

of  tlie  thin  soles  (if  in  front).  I  liave  known  cases  where  forgers 
have  been  ridden  or  driven  fast  to  wear  the  soles  of  the  feet  quite 
thin  by  the  forward  action  of  the  hind  feet.  G.  Johnson. 

34  Woods-mews,  Park-lane,  W.,  Feb.  9. 


With  these  quotations,  which  embody  the  gist  of  the  arguments 
in  the  London  Field  of  two  years  ago,  this  portion  of  the  volume 
will  be  brought  to  a  close  for  the  present.  Still  experimenting,  I 
hope  to  add  to  the  illusti-ations  when  another  edition  is  demanded. 

In  the  meantime,  the  subject  will  be  duly  considered  in  the  Breeder 
AND  Sportsman,  and  as  the  experiments  progress  the  results  will 
appear. 

I  am  happy  to  state  that  others  will  give  the  tips  a  fair  test,  add- 
ing their  experience  to  mine.  Their  commxmications  will  be  published 
in  the  paper,  and  extracts  from  the  British  journals  bearing  on  the 
question  \\i\\  also  be  given.  Being  so  fully  impressed  with  the  bene- 
fits that  will  follow  a  more  natural  treatment  of  the  foot  of  the 
horse,  and  the  improvement  that  will  follow  the  more  rational  prac- 
tice ;  ignoring  the  "  protection  "  that  invariably  results  in  injury,  I 
feel  that  too  much  attention  cannot  be  given. 


[APPENDIX.'\ 


AN  ESSAY  ON 

TOE  AND  SIDE-WEIGHTS 


CHAPTER  I. — Action  of  the  Race-Horse. 

Frequently  when  horses  are  the  topic  the  action  is  commented 
upon,  and  nearly  every  one  who  makes  any  pretentions  to  equine 
lore  is  prone  to  commend  or  condemn  that  of  the  animals  which  are 
the  subject  of  discussion.  The  neophyte  is  puzzled  to  understand  a 
good  deal  of  the  phi-aseology  which  horsemen  use  to  convey  their 
meaning  when  speaking  of  peculiarities  in  the  animals,  and  a  re- 
course to  the  dictionary  fails  to  aid  him  in  knowing  what  the  jargon 
means. 

Adjectives  expressing  every  degi-ee  of  quality  precede  terms  which 
are  inexj^licable,  and  he  ponders  over  the  matter  in  amazement. 
Bold,  prompt,  true,  slovenly,  slow,  rapid,  scrambling,  dwelling, 
I'ound,  smooth,  and  a  score  or  two  more  of  opi)osite  or  synonymous 
meaning  are  used  to  express  the  various  methods  of  progression 
which  horses  display.  There  are  some  in  common  use  which  are  still 
more  intricate,  and  he  hears  of  daisy-cutters  among  the  race-horses, 
and  open-gaited  trotters,  without  having  the  least  conception  of  what 
is  meant  by  the  obtuse  designations.  As  he  improves  in  knowledge 
and  becomes  familiar  with  the  technical  language  employed,  the  un- 
coutli  phrases  have  a  meaning,  oftentimes  very  expressive  and  appro- 
l)riate,  giving  a  lucid,  if  terse,  explanation  more  eftective  than  long 
descriptions. 


n  SHOES    TO    PLATES. 

In  a  treatise  intended  to  account  foi-  tlie  effects  of  toe  and  side- 
weights,  action  is  the  first  thing  to  consider,  and  if  we  cannot  find 
a  key  to  the  problem  in  this  study,  it  will  be  useless  to  look  for  it 
in  any  other  direction. 

Long  before  the  era  of  these  latter-day  appendages  to  the  feet  of 
the  trotter,  it  was  well  known  that  the  action  could  be  modified  by 
artificial  appliances  ;  and  so  long  ago  that  it  has  become  dignified  as 
a  proverb,  there  was  a  saying  that  "  an  ounce  on  the  heel  is  equival- 
ent to  a  pound  on  the  back,"  the  implication  being  that  weight  on 
the  feet  influenced  the  action  of  the  race-horse  prejudicially,  so  that 
he  would  tire  quicker  than  if  he  had  to  carry  sixteen  times  as  much. 
Something  of  the  same  idea  governed  when  it  is  said  that  one  horse 
could  beat  another  "  shoes  to  plates,"  as  this  was  about  the  strongest 
term  to  convey  decided  superiority   which   could   be  used. 

It  will  not  be  out  of  place,  then,  to  give  some  considei'ation  to  the 
sources  of  action,  so  far  as  can  be  shown  by  the  configuration  ;  and 
yet  the  form  will  not  decide,  for  in  exceptional  cases  the  horse  of  the 
truest  propoi'tion  may  be  faulty  in  his  movements,  when  the  one  of 
inferior  shape  is  the  superior.  Wei-e  it  not  so,  there  would  be  no 
use  in  the  endeavor  to  remedy  defects  by  education,  for  if  the  form 
absolutely  governed,  that  would  end  it,  and  the  only  recourse  would 
be  to  perfect  the  form  by  breeding  after  the  desired  type.  The  mod- 
ification can  be  accomplished,  and  the  slouch  is  transfoi-med  into  the 
graceful  dancer,  and  the  members  of  the  "  awkward  squad  "  become 
models  of  precision. 

In  training  a  man,  his  mentor  can  explain  to  him  wherein  his 
"  style  "  is  faulty,  and  the  necessity  for  acquiring  a  better  method  of 
using  his  limbs. 

All  the  trainers  in  the  world  could  not  change  the  shamble  of 
Weston  into  the  perfect  gait  of  O'Leary,  but  if  the  education  had 
been  commenced  in  time,  there  would  have  been  an  approximation 
to  the  desired  end.  Reasoning  and  example  are  the  dependence, 
when  man  is  the  pupil,  with  pi-actice  to  perfect ;  in  the  horse,  me- 
chanical devices  take  the  place  of  pi-ecepts,  and  the  combination  of 
these,  and  the  animal's  natural  intelligence,  are  all  that  the  trainer 


BRAIN    FORCE.  iii 

has  to  aid  him.  But  it  is  perhaps  premature  to  consider  the  resem- 
blance between  the  style  of  the  man  and  the  action  of  the  horse 
now,  as  they  will  come  in  more  appi'opriately  hereafter.  Neither  is 
it  necessary  to  give  elaborate  attention  to  the  anatomy  of  the  horse, 
and  a  brief  review  of  the  general  structure  and  physiology  of  the 
animal  will  be  sufficient. 

The  bones  are  the  mechanical  part ;  the  muscular  system  a  portion 
of  the  motive  power.  It  is  generally  conceded  that  the  brain  and 
the  nerves  which  spring  from  the  brain  furnish  the  balance  of  the 
force,  and  it  will  be  all  that  the  present  purpose  requires  to  accept 
this  as  the  correct  theoiy.  It  may  provoke  a  smile  when  I  claim 
that  the  action  of  the  brain  is  affected  by  mechanical  contrivances, 
and  yet  I  shall  fail  in  my  own  estimation  if  I  do  not  make  it  appar- 
ent. The  skeleton  of  the  horse  is  tolei'ably  familiar  to  those  who 
have  given  any  attention  to  the  formation  of  the  animal,  and  if  it 
has  not  been  studied  when  divested  of  all  the  tissues,  a  very  good 
idea  is  obtained  from  cuts  and  engravings. 

This  frame  has  some  similarity  to  that  of  man  ;  in  other  respects 
the  difference  is  strongly  marked.  Though  all  parts  have  more  or 
less  to  do  with  progression,  the  limbs  and  lumbar  vertebrae  are  the 
most  actively  employed.  A  glance  at  the  skeleton  will  show  that  the 
scapula,  shoulder-blade,  and  the  humerus,  or  upper  arm,  form  quite 
an  angle.  At  the  junction  of  the  humerus  and  radius,  the  elbow 
projects  upward  to  a  greater  heighth  than  would  be  thought  from 
looking  at  the  living  animal.  Pz-ojecting  from  the  back  part  of  the 
knee  is  a  bone,  termed  by  some  of  the  writers  the  trapezium,  and 
this  is  more  prominent  in  the  skeleton  than  would  be  supposed  from 
its  appearance  in  life.  At  the  ankle  the  external  sessamoid  has  a 
backward  prominence,  and  from  the  elbow  to  the  foot  each  joint 
shows  that  the  greatest  force  is  required  from  behind,  the  attachments 
for  the  tendons  and  ligaments  being  so  much  larger  tlian  in  front. 
"When  these  joints,  as  in  the  upper  "parts,  are  so  thickly  covered  with 
muscles,  and  rigidly  bound  with  ligaments,  it  is  evident  that  there 
cannot  be  much  side  motion,  the  bending  being  more  like  the  straight 
working  of  an  ordinary  hinge. 

When  the  foot  is  raised  it  is  thrown  outward  a  little,  unless  there 


IV  ANGLES    OF    PROGRESSION. 

he  malformation,  and  when  elevated  until  it  touches  the  elhow,  the 
frog  will  be  outside  of  the  ulna.  This  is  caused  by  the  slight  cui-va- 
ture  outward  of  the  bones.  The  purpose  of  this  is  evident,  as  it 
reduces  the  jar  by  bringing  the  concussion  oblique  on  the  joints. 
Were  the  supports  a  straight  column,  it  would  not  be  long  until  the 
padding  between  the  bones  would  become  inflamed,  and  in  a  short 
time  the  bones  would  be  diseased.  The  bones  of  the  posterior  part  of 
the  frame  are  similar  in  respect  to  angles  and  attachments  for  the  mus- 
cles, although  we  find  a  greater  degree  of  obliquity.  The  angle  between 
the  OS  innominatum — the  bone  which  forms  the  slope  of  the  hip — 
and  the  femur  corresponds  with  that  of  the  scapula  and  humerus  ; 
but  from  the  stifle  to  the  hock  there  is  a  reverse  angle,  and  from  the 
hock  to  the  foot  the  inclination  is  again  to  the  front.  Thus  there  are 
three  pronounced  angles  behind  to  one  in  front,  and  the  old  writers 
explained  the  necessity  of  this  configuration  to  the  bones  being 
connected  with  articulations,  whereas  the  front  was  guarded  by  the 
scapula  being  only  attached  to  the  frame  with  bands  of  muscular 
fibre. 

The  instantaneous  photographs  have  coiTected  naany  of  the  old- 
time  errors,  and  though  the  deduction  was  correctly  drawn  in  that 
particular,  a  great  deal  of  the  reasoning  has  been  upset.  Thus  it  was 
thought  that  the  animal  received  the  first  shock,  after  the  air-flight, 
on  the  front  leg,  and  the  yielding  of  the  muscular  attachments  of  the 
scapula  to  the  body  was  to  correct  this.  In  the  leap  proper,  like 
going  over  an  obstacle,  this  is  correct ;  but  in  the  flying  gallop  the 
first  contact  is  with  the  hind  foot,  and  in  the  square  trot  the  hind 
and  fore  feet  strike  the  eai'th  so  nearly  together  that  the  photograph 
fails  to  note  any  tiling  but  the  slightest  difierence.  If  diflferehce  there 
is,  it  is  ill  the  first  touch  of  the  hind  foot.  But  before  entering  on 
the  interesting  lessons  of  the  instantaneous  photographs  and  the  fund 
of  knowledge  they  present,  it  will  be  as  well  to  consider  more  fully 
the  frame,  its  covering  of  muscles  and  the  tendinous  and  ligamentary 
attachments.  There  are  immense  muscles  enveloping  the  quartei's, 
extending  over  the  loin  and  following  the  back-bone.  Tiiey  form 
protuberances,  called  by  horsemen  the  gaskin  or  lower  thigh,  and  in 
some  horses  nearly  fill  the  space  between  the  ham-string  and  tibia. 


FLEXORS    AND    EXTENSORS.  V 

In  places  these  are  attached  by  tendons  to  levers,  connected  on  the 
fore  leg  to  the  elbow,  trapezium,  extei'nal  sessamoid  and  pedal  bones, 
and  in  the  hind  leg  to  the  patella,  calcis- — point  of  the  hock — ses- 
samoid and  pedal  bones. 

These  attachments  have  a  great  deal  to  do  with  locomotion.  Anato- 
mists group  the  lower  muscles  as  flexors  and  extensors — the  office  of 
the  former  being  to  flex  the  limbs  by  pulling  them  up,  the  latter  to 
extend  them  and  thrust  the  foot  forward  ;  and  the  tendons  which 
convey  the  force  to  the  extx'emities  are  also  called  flexors  and  exten- 
sors. It  seems  to  me  that  these  terms  have  caused  a  misapplication 
of  the  uses  of  these  motors  by  those  who  have  only  a  limited  knowl- 
edge of  the  functions  of  the  muscles,  and  have  associated  the  most 
}X)wei-ful  with  the  duty  of  merely  flexing  the  limb.  This  is  an  erro- 
neous conclusion,  for  the  flexors  of  the  fore  legs  give  the  last  and 
immense  propulsive  efi"ort  to  hurl  the  body  through  the  air  in  the 
fast  gallop ;  and  though  the  fast  trot  depends  more  on  those  of  the 
posterior  limbs,  all  are  called  into  the  service  of  progression.  The 
flexors  are  elongated  when  the  foot  is  thrust  forward  by  the  contrac- 
tion of  the  extensors,  and  the  di-awing  up  of  the  tibres  throws  the 
body  along. 

To  properly  understand  the  eflect  of  toe-weights  on  the  trotter,  it 
will  be  necessary  to  give  attention  to  the  action  of  the  race-horse, 
and  proving  the  truth  of  that  which  seems  at  first  paradoxical,  that 
weight  is  a  drawback  to  one,  an  advantage  to  the'other.  And  now, 
without  the  aid  of  the  instantaneous  photograph  I  should  be 
completely  at  fault,  without  cue  or  scent  to  guide  me  on  the  trail. 
To  be  fully  understood  by  readers,  it  will  be  necessary  to  get  the 
cartoons  published  by  Muybridge,  for  words  are  inadequate  to  give 
a  proper  understanding  of  the  subject.  The  illustrations  of  the  fast 
gallop  are  on  one  card,  there  being  eleven  pictures  of  Sally  Gardner, 
the  eleven  covering  one  stride.  I^he  cameras  which  caught  and 
recorded  the  shadow  of  the  flying  animal  were  placed  twenty -seven 
inches  apart,  the  slides  being  opened  and  closed  by  an  electrical 
apparatus,  so  that  there  was  only  an  exposure  of  less  than  the  two- 
thousandth  part  of  a  second,  the  whole  stride  of  265  inches  being 


VI  CELERITY    PICTURED. 

I 

made  in  forty-two  himdredtlis  of  a  second,  and  each  camera  passed  in 
tbii-ty-eight  thousandths  of  a  second. 

It  is  difficult  to  conceive  such  rapidity  in  taking  and  recording  the 
representations,  though  any  one  who  will  take  the  trouble  can 
convince  the  most  skeptical,  by  a  mathematical  demonstration,  of  its 
truthfulness.  The  breaking  of  a  thread  opened  and  closed  the 
slide,  so  that  the  question  is  merely  a  simple  rule-of-three  proposi- 
tion of :  If  an  animal  is  covering  633  inches  in  a  second,  how  long 
will  it  take  to  pass  over  a  space  represented  by  a  thread  the 
twentieth  of  an  inch  in  thickness?  The  answer  gives  12,660  in  a 
second  of  time,  so  that  Mr.  Muybridge's  claim  of  a  two-thousandth 
part  is  far  inside  of  the  truth. 

As  we  progress  in  the  consideration  of  the  action,  as  disclosed  by 
the  instantaneous  photograph,  it  will  be  evident  that  this  celerity 
was  absolutely  essential,  or  the  whole  thing  would  be  a  confused 
blur. 

The  background  of  the  cartoon  shows  a  screen  divided  into  a 
number  of  vei'tical  spaces  twenty-seven  inches  apart,  numbered  from 
one  to  seventeen,  and  four  horizontal  lines,  the  lower  being  the 
ground  surface,  the  others  four  inches  apart.  There  is  also  another 
horizontal  line  which  marks  about  the  height  of  the  mare,  nearly 
touching  her  croup  and  withers  when  she  is  at  rest.  If  the  picture 
at  rest  was  taken  at  exactly  the  same  distance- from  the  camera  as 
those  when  she  was  in  motion,  it  will  prove  another  new  feature  in 
the  stride  of  a  race-horse,  viz  :  the  height  which  the  body  is  thrown 
when  in  the  air. 

Number  one  of  the  series  discloses  the  left  fore  foot  on  the  ground 
in  advance  of  the  line  between  the  spaces  five  and  six;  the  pastern 
is  bent  so  that  the  ankle  nearly  touches  the  gi'ound.  The  vertical 
line  is  midway  of  the  ankle  joint,  bisecting  the  body  about  four 
inches  back  of  the  elbow,  and,  a»  nearly  as  can  be  told,  the  mid- 
dle of  the  saddle.  The  body  of  the  rider  is  thrown  forward 
so  that  the  upper  part  of  his  back  is  in  advance  of  the  line, 
his  head,  even  the  back  portion  of  it,  being  six  inches  in  front. 
The  left  fore  leg  is  bent  at  the  knee,  the  front  part  of  the 
knee  being  twelve  inches  from  the  ground,  the  heel  of  the  upturned 


ERRORS    CORRECTED.  vii 

foot  eighteen  inches  from  the  ground.  The  hind  legs  are  bent 
at  the  hock,  the  toe  of  the  right-hind  foot  toucliing  the  line  which 
mai'ks  an  elevation  of  twelve  inches,  about  twenty  inches  in  advance 
of  the  left  hind  foot,  which  is  still  more  elevated.  The  metatarsal  is 
exactly  vertical,  as  shown  by  the  line  between  the  spaces  three  and 
four.  The  horizontal  line  answering  to  the  height  of  the  mare, 
shows  above  the  withers,  consequent  upon  the  bending  of  the  pastern, 
and  is  also  above  the  croup,  the  elevation  of  the  hind  feet  being  occa- 
sioned by  the  bend  at  the  hocks.  Thus  the  whole  weight  is  sustained 
by  the  left  fore  leg,  and  nearly  in  the  position  where  the  last  propul- 
sive effort  is  made  to  send  the  bodj'^  along.  As  number  eleven  of  the 
series  presents  a  better  view  of  the 


"  LAST    EFFORT,' 


I  will  defer  remarks  on  that  until  it  comes  up  for  consideration.  In 
number  one  the  nose  was  exactly  touching  the  line  between  spaces 
seven  and  eight ;  in  number  two  the  nose  is  advanced  a  third  of  the 
way  across  space  nine,  showing  that  thirty-six  inches  had  been  cov- 
ered, owing  to  the  thread  being  wrongly  placed  or  carried  along  a 
short  distance  before-  the  tension  was  sufficient  to  break  it — probably 
the  latter  being  the  cause.  This  picture  is  a  complete  refutation  of 
the  erroneous  conception  heretofoi'e  prevailing  among  artists  who  per- 
sist in  delineating  this  part  of  the  stride  of  a  race-horse  in  the  most 
absurd  manner,  fore  and  hind  feet  being  thrust  out  in  impossible  posi- 
tions. "  Stonehenge  "  and  others  discovered  the  absurdity,  but  fell 
into  that  which  was  just  as  far  from  the  truth.  The  eminent  author 
who  has  written-  so  much  that  is  valuable  in  relation  to  the  horse, 


VUl  STONEHENGE  ON  THE  GALLOP. 

had  evidently  given  a  good  deal  of  time  to  observation  and  close 
study  of  the  paces  of  the  animal,  and  it  was  from  no  lack  of  pene- 
tration, but  the  absolute  impossibility  for  the  brain  to  record  such 
active  movements.  His  observations  are  woi*thy  of  being  quoted, 
showing  what  was  considered  the  intelligent  explanation,  before  in- 
stantaneous photography  had  solved  the  problem.  Stonehenge 
writes  : 

"  To  represent  the  gallop  pictorially,  in  a  perfectly  correct  manner, 
is  almost  impossible.  At  all  events  it  has  never  yet  been  accom- 
plished, the  ordinary  and  received  interpretation  being  altogether 
erroneous.  When  cai-efully  watched,  the  horse  in  full  gallop  will 
be  seen  to  extend  himself  very  much,  but  not  nearly  to  the  length 
which  is  assigned  to  him  by  artists.  To  give  the  idea  of  high  speed, 
the  hind  legs  are  thrust  backwai'd  and  the  fore  legs  forward,  in  a 
most  xmnatural  position,  which,  if  it  could  be  assumed  in  reality, 
would  inevitably  lead  to  a  fall,  and  most  probably  to  a  broken  back. 
It  is  somewhat  difficult  to  obtain  a  good  view  of  a  horse  at  his  best 
pace,  without  watching  him  through  a.  race-glass  at  a  distance  of  a 
quai'ter  of  a  mile  at  least,  for  if  the  eye  is  nearer  to  him  than  this 
the  passage  of  the  body  by  it  is  so  quick  that  no  analysis  can  be 
made  of  the  position  of  the  sevei-al  parts.  But  at  the  above  dis- 
tance it  may  be  readily  seen  that  the  horse  never  assumes  the  at- 
titude in  which  he  is  generally  represented,  of  which  an  example  is 
given  at  the  beginning  of  this  article.  When  the  hind  legs  are 
thrown  backwards,  the  fore  feet  are  i-aised  and  more  or  less  curled 
up  under  the  knees,  as  it  is  manifest  must  be  the  case  to  enable 
them  to  be  brought  forward  without  raising  the  body  from  the 
ground.  In  the  next  act,  as  the  hind  feet  are  brought  under  the 
body,  the  fore  legs  are  thrust  straight  before  it ;  and  so,  whichever  is 
chosen  for  the  representation,  the  complete  extension  so  generally 
adopted  must  be  inaccurate.  It  may  be  said  that  this  is  meant  to 
i-epi'esent  the  moment  wlien  all  the  feet  are  in  the  air,  and  theoretic- 
ally it  is  possible  that  there  may  be  a  time  when  all  the  feet  are 
extended ;  because,  as  in  the  fast  galloj)  the  stride  is  twenty-fuur 
feet  long,  while  the  horse  only  measures  sixteen  from  foot  to  foot,  it 
follows  that  he  must  pass  through  eight  feet  without  touching  the 


THE    AIK    FLIGHT.  IX 

ground,  and  during  that  time,  as  of  necessity  his  legs  must  move 
faster  than  his  body,  the  fore  legs  may  change  their  position  from 
tlie  curled-up  one  described  above  to  the  extended  one  represented 
by  all  painters  as  proper  to  the  gallop.  Observation  alone  can  there- 
fore settle  this  question  ;  but,  as  I  before  remarked,  a  race-glass  at  a 
distance  of  a  quarter  of  a  mile  enables  a  careful  observer  to  satisfy 
himself  that  our  received  ideas  of  the  extended  gallop  are  incorrect." 
Following  this  is  a  jjicture  of  a  horse  with  fore  legs  bent  at  the 
knee,  and  nearly  parallel,  and  the  hind  legs  thrust  out  behind.  In 
number  two  of  the  instantaneous  }»hotographs,  the  hind  and  fore  legs 
are  all  doubled  up  under  the  body  by  being  bent  at  the  knees  and 
hocks.  The  near  fore  foot,  which  is  nearly  ready  to  leave  the  ground 
in  number  one,  just  touches  the  line  which  marks  twelve  inches,  and 
that  and  the  right  hind  foot  are  in  proximity,  the  hind  foot  being  a 
few  inches  in  advance  and  the  other  being  only  a  short  distance  be- 
hind. The  right  fore  foot  is  much  bent  at  the  knee  and  pastern,  and 
is  the  furthest  fi-om  the  ground,  the  hind  feet  a  little  more  elevated 
than  the  left  fore  foot.  The  knee  of  the  fore  leg  in  advance 
and  the  hock  of  the  near  hind  leg  are  about  sixty-two  inches  apart, 
a  striking  difference  from  the  ideal  of  tlie  artist,  or  the  position 
Stonehenge  noted  through  the  race-glass  at  a  distance.  The  top  of 
the  withers  and  croup  and  the  lower  part  of  the  muzzle  touch  the 
line  representing  the  height. 


IN    THE    AIR. 


The  next  picture,  number  three,   the   nose   i.s  on  the  line  between 
spaces  nine  and  ten,  equalizing  the  two   pictures   as  to  the  distance 


X  A    NEW    ILLUSTRATION. 

both  should  be.  Three  of  the  feet  ai'e  still  higher  from  the  ground, 
and  the  back  is  very  little  above  the  higher  horizontal  line.  The 
right  fore  knee  is  a  little  further  forward,  and  that  foot  is  not  so 
high.  The  hind  feet  have  been  carried  further  forward,  one  in  front 
of  the  other,  and  the  right  stifle  is  close  to  the  abdomen. 

Number  four  gives  another  new  illustration,  and  would  be  thought 
highly  absurd  if  the  proof  of  its  accuracy  was  not  so  emphatic.  The 
right  hind  foot  has  struck  the  ground,  the  toe  being  nine  inches  in 
front  of  the  line  between  the  spaces  eight  and  nine,  eighty-five  inches 
from  where  the  fore  foot  was  placed,  and,  consequently,  showing  this 
much  of  a  flight  through  the  air  when  all  the  feet  were  ofi"  the  ground. 
The  other  hind  foot  is  fifteen  inches  above  the  surface  of  the  track, 
and  in  advance  of  the  one  which  is  on  the  ground,  the  right  fore  leg, 
from  the  knee  down,  being  nearly  vertical,  the  arm  horizontal,  while 
the  other  fore  leg  is  much  bent  at  knee  and  pastern,  so  that  the  sole 
of  the  foot  is  uppermost  and  level.     Thus  the 


FIRST    CONTACT 

After  the  body  is  hurled  through  the  air,  is  on  one  hind  foot,  and  all 
our  ideas  of  concussion  and  impinging  force  proven  to  be  incorrect. 
This  hind  foot  is  thrust  so  far  forward  that  the  vertical  line  which 
strikes  the  ankle  also  strikes  the  cantle  of  the  saddle,  the  foot  being 
placed  immediately  under  the  rider,  without  much  inclination  of  the 
pastern.  This  thrusting  of  the  feet  so  far  forward  is  to  sustain  the 
equilibrium  as  much  as  possible,  and  to  give  the  greatest  contractive 
force  of  the  muscles. 

In  the  next  picture,  number  five,  the  same  hind  foot  is  on  the 


ARTISTICAL    FALLACIES.  xi 

ground,  the  pasterns  so  much  bent  that  the  fetlock  touclies  :  the  other 
hind  foot  on  the  twelve-inch  line,  the  fore  feet  more  extended. 
Between  the  two  illustrations,  five  and  six,  the  near  hind  foot  has 
come  to  the  ground,  and  in  six  both  hind  feet  touch.  There  is  a 
space  of  thirty-eight  inches  between  these  feet,  the  right  fore  leg  is 
extended  to  its  extreme  capacity,  the  heel  touching  the  twelve-inch 
line,  and  the  toe  elevated  so  that  the  sole  forms  an  angle  with  the 
horizontal  line  of  forty-five  degrees.  The  left  fore  leg  is  not  so  much 
bent  at  the  knee  as  in  the  preceding  two  pictures,  and  the  croup  is 
three  inches  below  the  horizontal  line  which  marks  the  height,  some 
fifteen  hands  and  an  inch.  Number  seven  shows  the  left  hind  foot 
and  right  fore  foot  on  the  ground,  enclosing  ninety  inches  of  space 
between  them,  the  other  feet  elevated  and  about  one  hundred  and 
thirty-five  inches  apart.  There  is  rather  more  sinkijig  of  the  body 
below  the  line  than  in  the  preceding,  with  the  head  very  nearly  in 
the  same  position. 

Figure  number  eight  comes  nearer  the  fancy  of  the  artist  tlian 
either  of  the  others,  and  yet  it  is  so  difierent  that  it  is  still  more 
conclusive  testimony  of  the  absurdity  of  the  portraiture  of  the  gi-eat 
limners  of  the  horse.  The  right  fore  foot  is  on  the  gi-oimd,  the  leg 
only  a  trifle  ofi"  the  perpendicular,  that  little  inclination  being  back- 
ward from  the  foot.  The  other  three  are  extended,  the  right  fore 
foot  projecting  in  fi-ont  of  the  nose,  and  elevated  fifteen  inches,  the 
toe  turned  up.  The  left  hind  foot  has  just  left  its  hold,  and  is  four 
inches  above  where  it  rested.  The  right  is  raised  sixteen  inches,  and 
at  the  very  furthest  exti-emity  of  its  reach.  Between  the  toes  of 
those  feet  which  are  the  furthest  stretched  apart  are  five  and  one- 
third  spaces,  equal  to  one  hundred  and  forty-four  inches ;  but  this  is 
aggravated,  owing  to  the  angle  from  the  camera  spreading  and  cover- 
ing too  much  space  on  the  screen.  Before  this  was  seen,  an  error 
arose  in  thinking  that  the  hind  foot  had  a  retrograde  action,  and  in 
the  analysis  of  the  stride  on  the  back  of  the  card  are  loops,  showing 
this  "  back-action  "  movement.  From  the  first  Governor  Stanford 
insisted  that  it  could  not  be  so,  as  all  the  movements  of  progression 
were  forward,  and  closer  reasoning  established  the  truth  of  the  posi- 
tion.    In  the  Pictorial  Gallery  of  English  Eace-Horses  ai-e  pictures 


^11  THE    LEADING    LEG. 

of  Miss  Letty,  painted  by  F.  C.  Turner ;  Industry,  A.  Cooper,  Royal 
Academician,  and  Atilla,  C.  Hancock  the  artist,  tlie  horses  represent- 
ed as  galloping  fast.  All  are  after  the  stereotyped  model,  and  if  one 
fore  foot  was  brought  to  the  ground,  with  the  leg  perpendicular,  they 
would  be  nearly  in  accordance  with  truth.  But  it  is  also  just  as  sure 
that  artists  will  stick  to  the  old  ideals  for  some  time  to  come. 

The  pastern  of  the  leg  which  supports  the  body  is  bent  to  a  hori- 
zontal position,  and  in  the  next  picture,  number  nine,  the  other  fore 
foot  is  on  the  point  of  striking.  This  is  the  "  leading  leg  ;"  the  one 
from  which  the  last  bound  was  made,  and  when  it  reaches  the  ground 
the  two  imprints  will  mark  the  length  of  the  stride.  It  requires  two 
more  representations,  however,  to  give  the  full  understanding.  In 
number  nine  the  body  has  been  carried  over  the  sup})orting  leg  until 
the  foot  is  under  the  saddle,  both  hind  feet  are  elevated  to  about  the 
same  height,  and  the  croup  is  within  two  inches  of  the  upper  hori- 
zontal line.  In  number  ten  the  left  fore  foot  sustains  the  weight, 
having  very  nearly  the  same  position  as  the  right  fore  leg  in  number 
eight,  but  in  place  of  the  extension  of  the  other  fore  leg,  it  has  a 
backward  inclination,  the  knee  bended  so  that  the  back  tendon  is  on 
the  line  which  is  twelve  inches  from  the  ground,  the  heel  being  above 
that  line.  The  hind  feet  have  become  separated,  though  the  hocks 
are  near  together,  and  the  croup  is  a  trifle  higher  than  in  the  pre- 
ceding picture.  This  is  the  position  from  which  the  cut  of  the  last 
efibrt  was  made. 

The  last  of  the  series  I  hold  to  be  the  most  important  of  any. 
The  eleven  pictures  give  more  than  one  stride,  and  consequentl}' 
every  portion  of  it  is  delineated.  In  number  one  the  nose  of  the 
mare  is  marked  by  the  line  between  seven  and  eight ;  in  number 
eleven  the  line  between  seventeen  and  eighteen  strikes  her  eye. 
This  would  give  two  hundred  and  seventy-eight  inches  to  cover  the 
stride  of  two  hundred  and  sixty-five.  More  than  this,  the  eleven 
cameras  embrace  a  space  of  over  five  Jiundred  inches,  the  horse  being 
the  centre  figure  in  each  picture.  As  was  stated  before,  the  toe  of 
the  left  fore  foot,  in  number  one,  was  sliglitly  in  advance  of  the  line 
between  five  and  six,  and  in  ten  it  is  found  on  the  line  between 
fifteen  and  sixteen.     In  number  eleven  the  foot  is  in  the  same  place, 


THE    FINAL    IMPULSE.  XUl 

but  the  body  lias  been  moved  forward  about  thirty  inches,  and  u 
perpendicuhir  from  the  toe  just  touches  the  very  back  part  of 
the  saddle.  The  other  fore  leg  has  been  brought  forward  so  that  the 
arm  is  at  right-angles  with  the  surfiice  of  the  gi-ound,  the  knee  bent 
so  much  that  the  foot  is  considerably  above  it,  in  part  owing  to  tlie 
bending  of  the  pastern.  All  of  that  fore  leg  is  above  the  twelve- 
inch  line.  The  hind  legs  are  drawn  iip,  and  though  one  hock  is 
raised  the  hiofhest,  the  feet  both  touch  the  horizontal  line  a  foot  from 
the  ground,  with  no  pei'ceptible  difference  in  .the  elevation.  The 
position  so  fortunately  caught  by  the  camera  at  the  right  moment, 
is  just  as  the  body  commences  its  flight  through  the  air,  and  which 
will  not  be  broken  by  contact  with  the  earth  until  eighty-five  inches 
have  been  covered.  The  last  impulse  of  the  hind  legs  to  aid  in  this 
flight  through  the  air  was  given  one  hundred  and  fortj'-two  inches 
back,  so  that  it  is  clear  the  great  motor  is  in  the  fore  extremities, 
and  the  old  notion  that  the  quarters  and  hind  legs  were  the  driving 
power,  the  fore  legs  only  needed  for  props,  to  be  rolled  out  of  the 
way,  is  effectually  exploded.  It  may  appear  tiresome  to  spend  so 
much  time  on  this  feature  of  the  action,  though  I  think  it  will  be 
found  well  worthy  of  our  attention  to  give  it  proper  consideration, 
and  I  shall  be  disappointed  if  I  do  not  show,  that  in  connection  with 
other  matters,  it  has  a  good  deal  to  do  with  the  explanations  why 
weight  on  the  feet  is  pi-ejvidicial  to  the  race-horse,  and,  in  some  in- 
stances, an  absolute  essential  for  hoi-ses  to  trot  fast. 

Those  who  have  the  Muy bridge  photographs  and  have  accompanied 
the  description  with  a  comparison  of  the  pictures,  Avill  understand 
the  action,  but  I  despair  of  making  it  clear  without  their  aid. 
Still,  I  trust  that  some  idea  can  be  derived  of  the  true  manner 
in  which  a  horse  gallops,  aided  by  the  three  cuts  which  Gov. 
Stanford  and  Mr.  Muybridge  have  kindly  given  me  permission 
to  use.  Thus,  the  body  is  flung  through  the  air  for  nearly  one- 
third  of  the  stride,  the  last  and  greatest  force  given  by  the  fore-legs. 
While  in  the  flight  the  legs  are  drawn  up,  hocks  and  knees  bent,  and 
the  feet  close  together.  There  is  a  change  in  the  position  of  the 
legs  while  the  body  is  suspended  in  air,  and  one  hind  foot  is  thrust  as 
far  forward  as  it  can  be  advanced,  and  the  first  contact  is  made  with 


XIV  AN    UNAIDED    MOTOR. 

that  foot.  In  a  very  short  time,  marked  by  a  space  of  thirty-eight 
inches,  the  other  hind  foot  comes  to  the  aid  of  its  fellow,  and  when 
the  first  that  struck  is  raised  a  fore  foot  is  down.  Thus  there  have 
been  both  hind  feet  on  the  gi'ound  at  one  time,  and  then  a  fore  and 
hind  foot  on  opposite  sides  sustain  the  weight,  though  placed  widely 
apart — ninety  inches.  The  hind  foot  does  not  leave  the  ground  until 
the  fore  foot  is  brought  under  the  brisket,  and  then  fifty-two  inches 
in  advance  of  that  the  other  foot  strikes,  but  evidently  not  until  the 
first  has  left  the  gi'ound.  This  is  proven  by  the  space.  Notwith- 
standing the  hind  legs  ai-e  so  much  longer,  thirty-eight  inches  mark 
the  step,  and  the  photograph  not  only  shows  them  on  the  ground  at 
the  same  time,  but  from  the  placing,  proving  that  both  remain 
there  for  a  period,  uniting  the  strength  of  all  the  muscles.  From 
the  elbow  to  the  ground  an  average-sized  horse  will  measure  thirty- 
seven  inches,  and  after  due  allowance  is  made  for  the  further  exten- 
sion which  the  straightening  of  the  humerus  affoi-ds,  fifty-two  inches 
is  a  greater  space  than  can  be  covered  by  the  fore  feet  remaining  on 
the  around  at  the  same  time.  Now  comes  into  action  the  same  foot 
which  lent  the  last  impulse  at  the  commencement  of  the  stride,  and 
the  strain  on  that  is  far  greater  than  either  the  hind  legs  or  the  other 
fore  leg  has  to  bear.  There  has  been  none  to  ease  it,  or  to  bear  a 
portion  of  the  burden,  and  though  the  othei-s  have  given  the  impetus, 
the  last  supreme  effoi-t  is  made  by  that.  And  made  Avith  a  great 
proportion  of  the  weight — -at  least  two-thirds  of  that  of  horse  and 
rider — to  be  raised  at  a  disadvantage.  Is  it  any  wonder  that  horses 
"  change  their  legs  "  so  that  the  other  may  do  its  share  of  the 
labor  1  Is  it  surprising  that  there  should  be  so  many  "  bowed 
tendons  "  and  "  sprung  sinews  f  Under  the  teachings  of  the  in- 
stantaneous photographs,  is  it  at  all  remarkable  that  there  should  be 
twenty  race-horses  go  wrong  in  front  to  one  behind  1  We  can  now 
see  what  these  great  muscles  are  for  which  clothe  the  shoulder,  and 
which  are  bunched  up  on  the  arm,  and  the  powerful  tendons  at- 
tached to  the  knee,  ankle  and  foot.  The  load  has  to  be  raised  from 
this  one  leg  two  and  a  half  times  in  every  second,  and  it  is  this 
velocity  which  tells  "  the  pace  which  kills." 

But  there  is  a  far  gi-eater  velocity  which  is  not  so  well  understood, 


THE    PROBLEM    SOLVED.  XV 

and  which  is  not  so  easily  explained.  If  a  horse  is  running  at  the 
rate  of  a  mile  in  1:40,  and  he  strides  two  hundred  and  sixty-five 
inches,  it  is  easy  to  determine  the  number  of  times  ejvch  leg  is  moved, 
A  timing-watch,  tape-line,  pencil,  paper,  and  a  little  arithmetical 
knowledge  are  all  that  are  necessarv. 

The  position  of  the  feet  have  been  noted.  "We  have  seen  that  the 
fore  foot  left  the  ground  when  it  was  almost  as  far  back  as  the  loin, 
drawn  up  and  thrown  forward  until  struck  again  under  the  nose. 
The  celerity  of  this  movement  is  almost  beyond  calculation,  and  until 
Mr.  Muybridge  perfected  his  machinery  there  was  a  confused  blur. 
The  plates  had  to  be  made  so  "sensitive"  that  the  shadow  of  a  can- 
non-hall would  be  transfixed  as  it  flew  past,  and  Jove  invoked  to 
lend  his  lightning  to  open  and  close  the  slides  which  guarded  the 
plates  from  contamination  until  the  moment  arrived,  when  the  gro- 
tesque pictures  could  be  produced  with  defined  outlines.  I  will  not 
venture  at  pi-esent  on  an  estimate  of  the  rapidity  with  which  the  feet 
are  moved.  That  it  is  fast,  all  will  admit  who  will  give  any  thought 
to  the  subject. 

Here  is  the  key  to  the  answer.  In  this  lies  the  solution  of  the 
problem  of  the  acceleration  of  the  speed  in  the  race-horse  when  shoes 
are  replaced  with  plates — in  this  the  vindication  of  the  old  proverl) 
"that  an  ounce  on  the  heel  is  worse  than  a  pound  on  the  back." 

And  now  we  will  try  an  experiment :  I  take  a  cane,  the  length  of 
the  fore  leg  of  a  horse.  It  weighs  eight  ounces — one  foot  of  the 
upper  end  balancing  the  other  two  feet.  I  move  it  through  the  air 
with  ease,  bringing  it  from  a  resting  position  into  fast  motion  as 
quickly  as  I  can,  and  I  can  stop  it  at  the  end  of  the  circuit  without 
expending  a  great  deal  of  force.  I  reverse  it,  placing  the  heavy  end 
on  the  floor.  It  not  only  requires  a  good  deal  more  force  to  over- 
come the  inertia,  but  more  accordingly  to  stop  it  when  it  reaches  the 
desired  i)oint.  I  can  switch  it  without  fatigue  for  some  time — when 
clubbed  it  soon  tires  the  muscles. 

Fatigue  has  the  effect  to  cause  a  sharper  action  of  the  muscles. 
When  a  horse  is  tiring,  he  commences  to  labor.  The  smooth,  clean 
action  is  lost,  and  he  "clambers,"  "sprawls,"  and  then  "goes  all 
abroad."     The  horse  when  fresh  has   carried  his  rider,  as  the  old 


XVI  THE  OUNCE  ON  THE  HEEL. 

liuntsman  expressed  it,  "  as  smooth  as  oil;"  when  "done,"  the  loin 
Vmmps  against  the  saddle,  and  the  knees  are  raised  with  a  spasmodic 
jerk. 

When  I  come  to  the  consideration  of  the  effects  of  v/eight  on  the 
feet  of  trotters,  I  will  give  some  illustrations  which  I  have  met  in 
my  own  practice,  and  those  Avhich  have  come  under  my  observation 
in  that  of  others.  It  is  needless  to  s})end  time  in  showing  that  race- 
horses can  run  faster  with  weight  off  their  feet,  as  that  is  acknowl- 
edged by  all  whose  experience  is  worth  referring  to  ;  but  the  cause  of 
it  has  been  more  or  less  a  mysteiy.  Heretofore  I  thought  it  was 
entirely  owing  to  the  change  in  action,  and  that  a  few  ounces,  more 
or  less,  on  the  feet  of  so  powei'ful  an  animal  as  a  horse  could  not 
load  him  to  such  a  difference.  But  now  I  firmly  believe  that  even  if 
the  action  were  unchanged,  the  actual  difference  in  weight  would  be 
detrimental,  and  that  the  ounce  on  the  heel  nuist  haA^e  its  effect. 
As  I  progress,  there  will  be  comparisons  between  the  action  of  the 
race-horse  and  that  of  tlie  trotter,  and  to  avoid  repetition  we  will 
now  see  what  the  photographs  teach  in  relation  to  the  trotting  gait. 


CHAPTER  II. — Action  of  the  Fast  Trotter. 

More  than  two  hundred  years  ago,  the  Duke  of  Newcastle  de- 
scribed the  trot  in  the  following  words,  which  are  copied  literally 
from  his  "  New  Method  to  Dress  Horses  : " 

"  Secondly.  In  a  Trott.  The  Action  of  his  Leggs,  is,  Two  Leggs 
in  the  Ayre,  and  Two  Leggs  upon  the  Ground,  at  the  same  Time 
moved  Cross;  Fore  and  Hinder  Leg  Cross;  which  is  the  Motion  of  his 
Leggs  a  Swifter  Walk  :  For,  in  a  Walk,  and  a  Trott,  the  Motion  of  the 
Horses  Legges  are  all  one,  which  his  Leggs  make  Cross,  Two  in  the. 
Ayre  Cross,  and  Two  upon  the  Ground  Cross,  at  the  same  time ;. 
Fore-Legg  and  Hinder-Legg  Cross ;  and  every  Remove  changes  his. 
Leggs ;  Cross :  as  those  that  were  in  the  Ayre  Cross,  are  now  Set 
Down,  and  those  that  were  upon  the  Ground  Cross,  are  now  puU'd 
up  in  the  Ayre  Cross.  And  this  is  the  Just  Motion  of  a  Horse's. 
Leggs  in  a  Trott."  Making  due  allowance  for  the  quaint  form  of 
expression,  capitals  and  italics,  the  trot  is  accurately  described  and 
the  diagonal  motions  correctly  given. 

It  is  safe  to  say  the  "Thrice  Noble,  High  and  Puissant  PPvINCE, 
WILLIAM  CAVENDISHE,"  as  he  is  styled  on  the  title  page,  never 
saw  a  fast  trot,  or  he  would  have  given  a  fuller  description,  as  he 
dwells  on  the  action  of  the  gallop,  describing  it  just  as  accurately  as. 
any  of  the  latter  day  writers  befoi-e  instantaneous  photography  was, 
known. 

The  first  series  of  photographs — those  which  are  mounted  on  cards, 
and  which  were  for  sale  by  Mr.  Muybridge — contained  twelve  repre- 
sentations. The  cameras  wei-e  placed  twenty-one  inches  apai't,  with, 
the  vertical  lines  on  the  background  twenty -one  inches  apart,  and 
three  horizontal  lines,  marking  four,  eight  and  twelve  inches  of  ele-  - 
ration.  In  the  later  series  the  cameras  were  doubled,  but  as  none 
of  the  latter  have  been  offered  for  sale  yet,  I  will  confine  the  expla- 


Xviii  ■  A  SQUARE  TROTTER. 

nations  to  the  first  card.  The  subject  was  Abe  Edginton,  a  horse 
which  has  a  record  of  2:23f,  and  as  square  a  trotter  as  can  be  found. 
He  was  probably  trotting  faster  than  a  2:24  gait  when  the  pictures 
were  taken,  as  Marvin  sent  him  along  at  his  best  rate.  In  place  of 
threads  stretched  across  the  track,  wires  were  used,  sunk  below  the 
ground,  excepting  a  width  of  about  two  feet  on  the  inner  side,  in 
which  they  were  exposed.  The  sulky  wheel,  when  it  touched  the 
wire,  established  the  electi-ical  circuit,  and  with  so  much  greater  uni- 
formity than  when  threads  were  used,  that  there  is  more  exactness, 
and  each  picture  is  a  i*epresentation  taken  in  front  of  the  camera. 

No.  1,  of  course,  is  the  position  he  was  in  when  opposite  the  first 
camera,  and  it  was  when  the  left  fore  foot  and  right  hind  foot  were 
on  the  ground ;  the  fore  leg  only  a  trifle  from  the  pei-pendicular,  the 
divergence  being  backward,  and  the  hind  leg  well  advanced  under 
the  body,  with  considerable  bend  in  the  hock.  But  inasmuch  as 
there  is  .an  exact  duplication  in  the  stride  of  the  square  trotter,  in 
fact  two  strides  in  what  is  universally  called  one,  there  is  only  a 
necessity  for  examining  one-half  of  the  figures  on  the  chart.  And  in 
order  to  commence  about  the  same  period  as  in  that  of  the  race-horse, 
viz  :  when  the  "  last  efibrt "  is  made  to  hurl  the  body  through  the 
air,  No.  3  will  be 


THE    INITIAL. 


In  this,  the  line  which  divides  the  vertical  spaces  10  and  11  is 
touched  by  the  eye  of  the  horse,  as  is  also  his  lower  jaw,  the  mouth 
being  open,  doubtless,  owing  to  the  tension  on  the  bit.  His  right 
hind  foot  is  in  space  5,  apparently  about  midway  of  the  space  which 
would  bring  it  115  inches  back  from  his  eye,  and  nearly  at  the  ex- 
treme limit  of  its  backward  reach.     The  final  propulsive  spring  has 


SCALPING."  xix 


been  made  and  it  is  ready  to  be  lifted  from  its  position.  The  fore 
foot  on  the  same  side  of  the  body  is  as  near  as  may  be  in  the  centre 
of  space  9,  the  foot  fourteen  inches  above  the  ground.  There  is  a 
slight  curve  at  the  pastern,  throwing  the  foot  a  little  back,  though 
the  cannon  is  in  a  vertical  line,  and  the  knee  is  bent  so  that  the  ai-m 
is,  as  nearly  as  may  be,  in  a  horizontal  position.  The  other  fore  foot, 
the  near  one,  which  left  the  ground  only  a  short  time  before  the 
hind,  is  in  space  7,  and  is  elevated  ten  inches.  It  is  thi-own  back 
some  two  feet  behind  the  elbow,  and  it  is  inside  of  the  left  hind  leg, 
in  juxtaposition  to  the  ankle  of  the  hind  leg.  This  is  the  point 
when  "  scalping  "  of  the  coronet,  or  wounding  of  the  ankle,  shin,  or 
hock  occurs,  and  when  the  inquiry  progresses  further,  this  will  be 
more  clearly  shown.  The  left  hind  foot  is  within  six  inches  of  the 
ground  surface,  and  is  about  four  feet  in  advance  of  the  other  hind 
foot.     In  the  next  picture  all  feet  are 


OFF   THE    GROUND. 


Owing  probably  to  the  wire  which  was  to  open  the  slide  of  the 
camera,  No.  4,  being  placed  too  far  from  No.  3,  the  representation 
covers  a  little  more  space  than  twenty-one  inches.  In  all  of  the 
others  the  back  of  the  driver  and  the  eye  of  the  horse  are  bisected  by 
the  lines  between  the  spaces;  in  tliis  they  are  a  few  inches  in  advance 
of  the  line. 

The  right  hind  foot,  which  was  in  the  act  of  leaving  the  gi-ound, 
twenty-four  inches  back,  is  now  raised  until  it  is  fully  sixteen  inclies 
up,  and  it  is  above  the  pasterft  some  four  inches.  The  p;\stern  is  so 
much  bent  that  the  sole  of  the  foot  is  turned  up,  but  from  the  pas- 


XX  OCCIDENT  AT  SPEED. 

terns  to  the  stifle  the  front  part  of  the  leg  forms  a  straight  line.  Tlie 
right  fore  foot  is  thrust  forward  so  that  there  is  only  a  slight  bend  at 
the  knee,  and  the  toe  is  within  eight  inches^  of  the  surface.  The 
feet,  on  the  same  side  of  the  body,  are  about  ten  feet  apart,  the  front 
being  across  the  line  between  spaces  11  and  12,  the  hind  in  the  cen- 
tre of  space  6.  The  left  fore  foot  is  in  space  9,  twenty  inches  from 
the  ground,  four  inches  higher  than  the  knee,  the  cannon  is  horizon- 
tal, the  a)'m  forming  an  angle  rather  more  acute  than  a  right  angle. 
The  left  hind  foot  is  within  four  inches  of  the  gi'ound  and  under  the 
elevated  fore  foot.  This  figure  is  nearer  the  artist's  conception  of  the 
fast  trotter  in  motion  than  any  of  the  others,  but  the  next  is  a  start- 
ling*innovation  on  previous  opinions. 

The  first  picture  of  a  trotter  at  speed,  which  was  engi'aved  from  a 
photogra})h  taken  by  Muy bridge,  was  that  of  Occident  (see  cut),  and 
the  fifth  of  this  series  is  nearly  the  same.  In  that  of  Occident  the  feet 
had  come  in  contact  with  the  gi'ound ;  in  this  the  hind  foot  is  almost 
touching,  the  fore  being  a  trifle  higher.  At  first  sight  it  does  not  con- 
vey the  least  idea  of  speed,  or  even  motion,  and  when  first  published 
elicited  ridicule  from  nearly  every  one  who  fancied  they  had  a  perfect 
knowledge  of  the  horse.  Had  those  of  the  gallop  preceded  the  trot, 
there  would  have  been  still  more  exuberant  jollity,  but  by  the  time 
they  made  their  appearance  people  had  given  some  thought  to  the 
subject,  and  though  many  are  still  sceptical,  a  man  of  any  intelli- 
gence who  has  examined  the  representations,  must  acknowledge  their 
truth. 

While  the  feet  on  opposite  sides  touch  the  ground  at  so  nearly  the 
same  time  that  the  sounds  of  the  contact  is  merged  into  one  in  the 
square  trotter,  the  hind  foot  probably  touches  first.  The  other  hind 
foot  is  thrust  backward  five  feet  behind  it,  and  is  elevated  fourteen 
inches.  The  raised  fore  foot  nearly  touches  the  breast,  the  knee 
folded  so  as  to  make  an  acute  angle  of  the  arm  and  cannon,  the  bend- 
ing of  the  pastern  giving  the  foot  the  greater  elevation.  In  considering 
the  effects  of  the  weights,  this  is  one  of  the  most  important  positions 
to  study,  as  the  flexors  have  performed  their  duty,  and  from  thence 
the  contra-acting  muscle  will  carry  it  forward.  The  sixth  figui'e  on 
the  card — the  fourth  which  I  have  taken  to  illustrate  the  stride — ^is 


"knee-action."  xxi 

nearly  the  same  as  the  first,  excepting,  of  course,  the  reversal  of  the 
feet.  The  feet  on  the  ground  are  firmly  planted,  the  body  having 
been  carried  over  them  until  the  front  leg  is  nearly  perpendicular 
from  the  ankle  up;  the  pastern  is  inclined  backwards  until  it  is  nearly 
horizontal. 

The  hind  pastern  is  still  more  bent,  so  that  the  ankle  is  lower  than 
the  coronet,  and  as  the  foot  is  under  the  loin,  the  hock  has  to  be  bent 
in  order  to  advance  the  foot  to  the  furthest  point.  The  other  hind 
leg  is  in  an  apparently  awkward  position.  From  the  stifle  to  the 
hock  it  is  nearly  parallel  with  the  body,  and  the  cannon  is  vertical? 
the  pastern  being  still  crooked.  This  foot  is  on  its  forward  journey, 
having  been  carried  from  space  7  to  space  9. 


THE    RAISED    FORE    FOOT 

Is  still  nearly  as  high  as  in  the  preceding  figure,  and  though  it  has 
not  been  carried  as  far  propoitionately  forward  as  the  hind,  it  is  now 
on  a  line  with  the  arm  of  the  other  leg.  The  sole  of  the  foot  is  close 
to  the  arm  of  the  same  leg,  the  arm  level,  the  bending  of  the  knee 
and  pastern  sharp. 

In  the  next  picture,  the  body  having  been  carried  twenty-one 
inches  forward,  the  feet  on  the  gi-ound  are  placed  that  much  back 
relatively.  This  has  straightened  the  pastern  of  the  fore  leg  some- 
what, that  of  the  hind  being  still  down.  The  fore  leg  is  now  exei-t- 
ing  its  final  impulse  ere  it  leaves  the  ground,  and  the  straightening 
of  the  pastern  of  the  hind  leg  will  complete  the  application  of  the 
force.  The  non-motors,  during  this  period  of  the  stride,  viz  :  the  left 
fore  and  right  hind  foot  have  been  advanced,  the  former  is  on  the  line 
which  divides  spaces  13  and  14,  and  the  other  on  the  line  between 
10  and  11.     The  fore  is  raised  to  a  height  of  eighteen  inches,  and  is 


XXll  A  COMPROMISE  GAIT. 

two  feet  in  front  of  the  other  fore  foot,  so  that  it  must  have  moA'ed 
rapidly  during  this  short  period  ;  and  this  motion,  if  I  am  not  greatly 
in  error,  has  a  bearing  on  the  qiiestion  of  the  effects  of  weight,  which, 
however,  will  come  in  more  appropriately  hereafter.  The  hind  foot 
is  advanced  imtil  it  is  parallel  with  the  other  hind  foot,  and  elevated 
some  distance,  so  that  the  hock  of  that  leg  shows  above. 

The  next  figure  is  nearly  a  duplicate  of  No.  3  on  the  card,  the  only 
difference  being  that  scarcely  half  of  the  stride  has  been  made.  By 
actual  measurement  from  between  the  prints  of  the  left  fore  foot  the 
stride  was  18|^  feet — 222  inches.  The  eye  of  the  horse  was  on  the 
line  between  10  and  11  in  No.  3,  and  in  figure  No.  8  it  is  on  the  line 
between  15  and  16,  five  spaces,  equal  to  105  inches.  Six  inches 
further  would  give  an  exact  duplicate. 

A  lesson  from  this  is  gained.  In  No.  3  the  right  fore  and  left 
hind  feet  wei*e  together ;  in  No.  8  they  are  at  least  six  inches  apart, 
showing  that  at  this  portion  of  the  stride  the  hind  foot  is  in  rapid 
motion  forwards,  outside  of  the  general  progi*ession,  while  the  fore 
foot  is  moving  slowly^  that  movement  being  principally  upwards. 

I  desire  to  call  particular  attention  to  this  fact,  that  when  the  fore 
foot  first  leaves  the  ground  it  is  elevated  more  slowly  than  the  hind 
advances,  not  giving  room  for  the  hind  foot  and  leg  to  get  in  a  proj)er 
position  ;  and  in  some  cases  it  is  so  ddatory  that  the  front  part  of  the 
hind  foot,  and  the  shoe  or  sole  of  the  front  are  brought  in  contact ;  a 
blow  on  the  horn  causes  pain,  or  the  coronet  is  wounded.  Tf  the 
hind  foot  is  carried  wide  enough  to  escape,  the  ankle  shin  or  hock 
receives  the  injury,  and  in  either  case  the  animal  endeavors  to  remedy 
the  trouble  by  a  change  in  the  action.  Unfortunately  it  has  not 
progressed  far  enoiigh  to  understand  that  this  can  be  accomplished 
by  quickening  the  motion  of  the  fore  feet ;  and  knowing  that  a  run 
or  canter  does  not  entail  the  injury,  the  thoughts  are  first  directed  to 
relief  in  that  way.  But  from  having  been  punished  for  forsaking 
the  trot,  a  compromise  is  tried,  and  "running  behind,"  "single  foot- 
ing," etc.,  is  resorted  to.  Before  entering  into  this  portion  of  the 
argument,  it  may  be  as  well  to  review  the  trotting  action  as  exempli- 
fied by  a  horse  which  can  show  that  action  properly,  and  is  fast 
enough  to  display  the  peculiarities.     The  slow  trot,  such  as  the  Duke 


"  JOGGING."  xxiii 

of  Newcastle  desciibed,  is  entii-ely  difterent  from  that  which  will 
cai'ry  a  horse  a  mile  in  2:20  ;  though,  of  course,  there  are  points  of 
similarity.  How  to  perfect  that  slow  natural  movement  into  the 
flying  trot  is  the  important  question,  and  foi'tunately  Mr.  Muybiidge 
has  given  a  series  of  eight  pictures  representing  the  same  hoi-se,  Abe 
Edgington,  "jogging"  at  an  8-minute  gait.  Figures  3  and  6  of  that 
series  show  very  plainly  the  danger  of  injury  at  even  this  slow  rate, 
and  explain  why  young  horses  endeavor  to  avoid  the  trouble  by 
"hitching,"  etc.,  at  the  outset  of  their  education. 

In  No.  3  the  left  hind  foot  is  on  the  point  of  striking  the  ground 
directly  under  the  right  fore  foot,  the  toe  of  which  so  nearly  touches 
the  coronet  that  there  ife  no  separation  visible.  In  No.  6  the  other 
hind  foot  is  coming  down,  and  the  left  fore  foot  has  the  toe  still 
resting,  with  the  bottom  of  the  shoe  verfical,  and  in  close  proximity 
to  the  wall  of  the  hind  foot.  These  two  figures  are  the  nearest  ap- 
proach to  the  feet  being  all  off  the  ground,  and  there  is  very  little 
elevation  of  the  hind  feet  di^i'ing  any  part  of  the  stride.  The  fore 
foot,  at  its  highest  position,  is  only  a  little  over  twelve  inches  from 
the  ground,  and  the  forward  motion  is  obtained  with  very  little 
bending  of  the  knee  in  comparison  with  that  which  marks  the  faster 
pace.  There  is  also  a  great  lack  of  energy,  as  the  body  is  in  the  air 
for  so  short  a  pei-iod  that  a  few  inches  measure  the  space,  and  the 
hind  foot  is  slightly,  if  at  all,  advanced  beyond  the  imprint  of  the 
fore.  The  stride  is  about  eleven  feet,  so  that  it  is  evident  that  the 
gi*eat  acceleration  of  the  speed  is  due  more  to  the  rapidity  of  action 
than  to  the  ground  covered.  "  Jogging  "  is  an  expressive  charactei*- 
ization  of  this  gait,  as  it  calls  into  service  only  a  small  portion  of  the 
muscular  force  of  the  animal.  This  is  the  gi-oundwork,  however,  to 
build  the  supei-structure  upon ;  and  the  slow  gait  must  be  studied  in 
order  to  discover  what  is  necessary  to  perfect  it  into  the  faster.  The 
student  will  perceive  that  the  greatest  troul)le  is  in  the  dilatoriness 
of  the  front  feet ;  and  without  the  photographs  he  will  discover  that 
the  hind  feet  are  brought  into  close  proximity  with  the  fore.  IMany 
horses  "  forge,"  strike  the  toe  of  the  hind  shoe  against  the  web  of  the 
front,  and  in  spite  of  the  art  of  the  shoeing  smith  or  the  skill  of  the 
equestrian,  persist  in  the  habit.       Something  may  be  effected  by 


XXIV  FORGING. 

"  throwing  them  more  on  their  haunches,"  and  compelling  cleaner 
action  by  a  tight  rein  and  the  application  of  the  spur ;  though  many- 
remain  incorrigible  under  the  best  hands,  and  as  soon  as  the  momen- 
tary fear  of  punishment  passes  away  they  relapse  into  their  custom- 
ary slovenly  paces.  Horses  which  have  naturally  a  long  stride  are 
more  prone  to  exhibit  this  style  of  trotting  than  those  which  are 
moi'e  prompt,  and  hence  the  Morgans  were  favorites  on  account  of 
the  spirited  manner  in  which  they  handled  their  feet.  This  forging 
takes  place  soon  after  the  fore  foot  has  left  the  ground,  and  imme- 
diately before  the  hind  foot  is  brought  down.  If  the  front  foot  can 
be  got  out  of  the  way  the  remedy  is  at  hand  ;  and,  without  dwelling 
longer  on  the  phases  of  action,  excepting  as  they  are  presented  by  the 
consideration  of  artificial  appliances,  I  will  proceed  to  that  part  of 
the  subject.  Without  a  full  series  of  the  pictorial  representations  of 
horses  in  motion,  I  despair  of  making  it  entirely  intelligible,  though 
I  think  enough  has  been  shown  to  base  views  upon  which  will  be 
found  logical.  • 


I 


I 


CHAPTER  III. — Action  Controlled  by  Artificial 

Appliances. 

It  is  oftentimes  troublesome  to  give  a  clear  explanation  of  a  sub- 
ject with  which  one  is  familiar.  There  are  questions  which  test  the 
scrutinizing  faculties  to  the  utmost  capacity,  and  which,  after  years 
of  study  and  many  experiments,  are  still  in  doubt.  Simple  as  it  may 
appear  to  those  who  have  not  endeavored  to  unravel  the  mystery,  the 
reasons  for  ai*tificial  appliances  controlling  the  action  of  horses  are 
not  clearly  appai-ent,  and  conjecture  has  to  play  a  prominent  part  in 
the  argument.  A  good  deal  of  the  reasoning  is  forced  to  be  hypo- 
thetical, depending  on  analogy,  and  trusting  to  laws  which  govern  in 
cases  which  are  somewhat  similar.  Not  the  least  perplexing  of  these 
questions  is  the  effect  of  weight  on  the  feet  of  horses,  especially  the 
power  of  governing  trotting  action  by  the  application  of  weight  on  par- 
ticular parts  of  the  foot.  The  latest  inventions  of  compact,  metallic 
masses,  placed  on  the  outside  of  the  hoof,  have  effected  wonderful 
changes,  and  in  so  many  instances  that  the  advantages  are  beyond  cavil ; 
and  the  trainer  who  does  not  avail  himself  of  the  benefits  to  be  derived 
from  a  proper  use  of  them,  is  far  behind  the  requirements  of  the  age. 
From  their  use  fast  trotters  have  been  multiplied,  and  speed  and  steadi- 
ness resulted.  There  are  so  many  illustrations  of  the  benefits  which  have 
followed  their  adaptation,  that  there  is  little  necessity  for  rehearsing 
the  numerous  instances  in  which  they  have  proven  successful.  Every 
observing  trainer  of  trotters  is  aware  of  what  has  been  accomplished  ; 
every  man  who  has  paid  any  attention  to  the  trotters  of  the  last  ten 
years,  must  concede  the  wonderful  effects,  if  he  has  pursued  the 
investigation  with  an  ordinary  amount  of  intelligence.  Trainers, 
breeders,  and  fanciers  of  the  trotting-horse  have  witnessed  injuries 
resulting,  as  well  as  good  ofiices ;  and  before  the  ai)plication  of  the 
weight  was  properly  understood,  it  was  thought  the  drawbacks  were 


XXVI  MENTAL  INFLUENCES. 

more  to  be  feared  than  the  advantages  justified.  These  have  been 
overcome  by  a  better  imderstanding,  and  the  knowledge  which  years 
of  experience  have  brought  has  reduced  the  casualties  to  a  minimum. 
In  all  probability,  there  are  many  instances  where  the  use  of  weights 
has  saved  the  animal  which  wore  them,  by  doing  away  with  the 
necessity  of  harsher  methods,  and  by  lessening  the  strain  which 
would  follow  harder  woi'k. 

I  shall  take  the  ground  that  the  good  results  which  follow  the 
use  of  toe- weights  are  dependent,  first,  on  mental  influences ;  sec- 
ondly, on  mechanical  effects.  The  former  I  hold  to  as  by  far  the 
most  potential  of  the  two,  and  the  grand  secret  of  the  success  which 
has  resulted  from  their  judicious  application.  It  may  be  better,  per- 
haps, to  state  that,  the  effect  of  toe-weights  is  to  fix  a  different 
habit  of  action  in  the  mind,  the  intelligence  of  the  pupil  being 
called  into  requisition,  and  this  is  supplemented  by  mechanical  laws 
which  aid  in  the  development.  I  am  aware  that  this  position  will 
be  thought  untenable  by  nearly  every  one  who  has  studied  the  sub- 
ject, though  I  feel  the  utmost  confidence  in  the  correctness  of  the 
statement,  and  will  present  the  ai"guments  with  a  degree  of  positive- 
ness  which  has  arisen  from  long  study  and  careful  examinations. 
I  was  forced  to  this  conclusion  from  absolute  necessity.  That  there 
was  some  particular  configuration  which  required  weight  on  the  feet 
to  counteract  the  wrong  formation,  was  the  first  idea  which  came  to 
my  mind,  and  from  the  pacing  gait  being  so  susceptible  of  a  change 
to  the  fast  trot,  there  was  some  foundation  to  commence  upon. 
From  many  pacers  having  a  form  which  differed  from  that  which 
is  usually  seen  in  good  horses,  we  are  prone  to  associate  these  pecu- 
liarities with  the  pacing  gait.  A  sloping  quarter,  the  stifles  placed 
low,  a  good  deal  of  bend  in  the  hock,  and  with  high  withers,  narrow 
chest,  and  fore-legs  close  together,  is  called  the  pacing  form.  But 
the  very  fastest  pacers  I  have  seen  were  of  a  different  pattern. 
Longfellow,  Jim  Brown,  Nimrod  and  Hiram  Tracy  are  straighter  in 
the  quarters  than  a  majority  of  trotters,  and  though  Defiance,  Lady 
St.  Clair  and  Ben  Butler  have  a  good  deal  of  angle  in  the  innomi- 
natuni,  it  is  not  enough  to  attract  particular  notice.  Those  were 
all  fast  pacers,  and  Defiance  has  the  fastest  record  at  both  gaits, 
having  paced  in  2:17f  and  trotted  in  2:24. 


"  CONVERTED      PACERS.  XXVU 

There  was  a  pacer  owned  in  Chicago  which  liad  a  pacing  record  of 
2:30,  though  he  could  go  very  much  faster  in  a  brush  than  that  rate. 
He  was  driven  by  the  side  of  Prairie  Boy,  a  trotter  with  a  recoi'd  of 
2:32.  The  owner  of  the  team  had  a  f;xrm  some  twelve  miles  from 
the  city,  and,  returning  from  thence  the  same  day  he  drove  there,  the 
horse  was  wearied.  Part  of  the  distance  there  was  deep  sand,  which 
increased  the  weariness  of  the  pacer,  and,  before  he  got  home,  he 
chansred  his  ffait  to  a  trot.  This  was  the  first  instance  when  he  had 
shown  any  ca})acity  to  leave  his  natural  method  of  progression,  and 
his  driver  was  a  good  deal  astonished  at  the  change.  The  next  day 
he  drove  him  and  his  mate  to  the  track — the  Chicago  Driving  Park — 
and,  much  to  the  surprise  of  every  one  who  witnessed  the  perfor- 
mance, he  not  only  trotted,  but  could  carry  Prairie  Boy  oflT  his  feet 
and  force  him  to  a  sharp  run.  After  that  display,  he  was  bought  by 
some  parties  and  put  in  training,  and  there  was  not  the  least  difii- 
culty  in  making  him  trot.  It  was  claimed  that  he  showed  a  quarter 
in  thirty-one  seconds,  and  it  was  cei-tain  that  there  was  not  a  hoi'se 
on  the  track  which  he  had  the  least  trouble  in  beating  a  long  way  off 
through  the  stretch.  From  some  internal  trouble,  he  could  not  keep 
up  his  rate  further  than  half  a  mile,  and  was  entirely  useless  for 
track  purposes.  This  was  before  the  era  of  toe-weights,  and  there 
was  no  change  from  the  shoes  he  wore  on  the  road.  In  those  same 
shoes  he  paced  until  he  became  wearied  from  the  journey,  and  the 
deep  sand  completed  the  lesson. 

In  this  case  there  was  a  preternatural  adaptation  to  benefit  at  once 
from  instructions — something  of  the  same  character  which  enables 
Blind  Tom  to  play  a  difiicult  piece  from  hearing  it  once — and  is  such 
an  unusual  occurrence  that  it  may  never  be  witnessed  again.  Still, 
it  has  a  bearing  on  the  question,  for  it  is  palpable  that  there  was 
nothing  in  the  waj  of  this  horse  trotting  fast  excepting  the  knowl- 
edge of  the  proper  action  which  was  requisite  to  enable  him  to  do  so, 
and  this  knowledge  came  as  nearly  intuitively  as  it  could.  There 
was  no  "  balancing "  necessary,  no  change  of  centre  requii-ed ;  the 
machinery  was  there,  ready  to  run  whenever  the  brain  took  the 
direction.  The  case  of  Defiance  presents  some  similarity  to  the  one 
recited.     He  had  paced  in  races  for  yeai-s,  gaining  his  reconl  of  2:1 7  J 


XXVm  PACING TROTTING. 

in  1873,  and  in  1872  he  made  a  dead  heat  of  two  miles  with  Long- 
fellow in  4:47|.  In  1874  he  paced  a  number  of  races,  and  was 
taken  East,  returning  in  the  Fall. 

After  his  return  he  was  placed  in  training  to  trot,  and  fi'om  the 
first  he  could  trot  very  fast,  but  owing  to  his  long  schooling  at  the 
pacing  gait,  it  was  a  troublesome  affair  for  his  teacher  to  overcome 
the  settled  propensity.     He  was  weighted  quite  heavily,  and  when 
not  permitted  to  pace  he  would  take  a  hand  gallop,  and  appeared  to 
have  come  to  a  determination  to  be  as  annoying  as  possible.     His 
trainer  was  a  man  of  a  great  deal  of  experience,  of  an  equable  tem- 
perament, and  with  confidence  enough  in  himself  to  pursue  the  course 
his  judgment  dictated.     After  patiently  endeavoring  to  educate  him 
by  the  gentle  method,  he  adopted  the  plan  of  running  him  until  he 
became  so  tired  that  he  could  neither  run  nor  pace,  and  by  that  means 
he  succeeded  in  educating  him  to  the  desii-ed  point.     The  weight 
made  racing  very  fatiguing,    and  it  was    inimical    to    the    lateral 
motion  ;  and  when  it  came  to  the  choice  between  the  gallop  and  the 
trot,  the  latter  was  adopted.     As  early  in   1875  as  April  29th,  he 
trotted  a  race  against  four  competitors,  winning  in  "  straight  heats  " 
in  2:38,  2:34|,  2:35|.     On  May  1st  he  was  again  victorious,  in  the 
improved  time  of  2:28f,  2:30^,  2.271 ;  and  on  May  11th,  he  trotted 
against  Abe  Edginton,  in  a  match  for  ten  thousand  dollars  a  side. 
It  was  a  very  remarkable  race,  in  which  it  took  five  closely-contested 
heats  to  decide  it.     Defiance  won  the  first  in  1:M\  ;  the  second,  in  a 
jog,  in  2:29,  and  retained  the  lead  in  the  last  until  only  a  short  dis- 
tance from  the  goal.     Every  heat  was  fought  for  inch  by  inch,  and 
owing  to  the  track  being  soft  on  the  inside,  a  great  deal  of  ground 
was   lost  on  the  turns  by  the  horses  being  driven   on  the  extreme 
outside,  which  added  at  least  two  seconds  to  the  time  of  each  heat. 
In  one  of  the  heats  he  lost,  Defiance  broke  not  very  far  from  the 
score,  and  finished  on  a  pace,  as  much   probably  owing  to  his  driver 
not  caring  to  make  an  effort  to  recover  him  in  the  few  vards  between 
the  mishap  and  the  wire.     In  the  scoring  for  the  five  heats,  he/)nly 
came  up  once  on  the  pace,  and  at  the  finish,  amid  the  yells  of  thou- 
sands of  spectators,  he  was  as  constant  as  a  clock.     The  finish  of  the 
fifth  heat  is  thus  described  in  the  account  published  at  the  time: 


AN  EXCITING  HEAT.  Xxix 

"  Both  are  now  fairly  in  the  straight  work,  and  the  grey  is  gaininf». 
He  is  surely  gaining,  yet  there  are  no  shouts  from  enthusiastic  parti- 
sans. It  is  too  exciting  for  cheers.  Half-way  home  EJginton  leatls  ; 
he  is  half  a  length  in  advance ;  he  is  increasing  his  advantage. 
Muscles,  lungs,  heart,  brain,  all  are  tired  in  the  bay.  You  can  hear 
his  sobs  as  he  approaches  the  outcome.  He  reels  ;  his  ears  droop  ; 
his  eye  is  bloodshot  as  he  staggers  over  the  score  a  length  behind 
Edginton,  who  has  won  in  2:26."  This  was  a  surprising  race  for  a 
horse  to  make  whose  ti'otting  education  had  only  occupied  a  few 
months  ;  but  there  were  other  drawliacks  to  contend  against.  The 
ankles  of  the  hind  legs  were  all  "  stove  up,"  double  the  natural  size, 
and  so  badl}-  "cocked  "  that  the  weight  was  thrown  on  the  toe  to  an 
undue  degree.  Notwithstanding  these  ailments  and  the  hard  race 
with  Edginton,  the  day  following  he  took  part  in  the  2:27  race 
against  Sisson  Girl,  Ajax  and  George  Treat.  Strong  elastic 
stockings  were  worn  on  his  ankles,  binding  them  so  rigidly  that  many 
thought  they  were  an  injury.  He  won  the  first  heat  in  2:26^,  in 
the  teeth  of  a  heavy  gale,  and  led  in  the  second  to  beyond  the  half- 
mile  pole,  when  he  made  a  break,  and  refused  to  trot  again  until  he 
was  a  double  distance  out.  In  the  match  against  Edginton,  there 
was  196  pounds  in  the  sulky,  and  190  pounds  in  all  of  the  other 
races.  On  December  11,  1875,  he  trotted  against  St.  James.  When 
driven  by  Hickok  he  scoi-ed  2:27 — 2:30 — 2:24.  All  tliis  was  accom- 
plished within  a  year  after  the  commencement  of  his  training  to  trot, 
and  after  he  had  been  pacing  for  many  seasons. 

These  two  "  conversions  "  from  pacing  to  trotting  are  .worthy  of 
consideration.  The  first  case  shows  that  the  horse  had  happened  on 
a  manner  of  going  which  was  more  satisfactory  than  pacing,  and  he 
had  the  faculty  of  retaining  it  under  pressure.  All  that  was  neces- 
sary was  to  move  the  bit  in  his  mouth  if  he  attempted  to  start  on  a 
pace,  and  when  once  he  struck  the  trot  it  was  almost  impossible  to 
force  him  out  of  it.  As  has  been  stated  before,  when  the  animal 
becomes  tired  there  is  more  knee^ction — a  sort  of  spasmodic  jerk  to 
overcome  the  slusrfjishness  of  the  tired  muscles.  The  sandy  road  in- 
creased  the  tendency  to  a  sharper  bending  of  the  knee,  and  the  two 
combined  had  the  same  result  as  the  application  of  weight  on  the  toe. 


XXX  OVERCOMING  INERTIA. 

In  the  training  of  Defiance,  the  toe-weights,  in  a  great  measure,  did 

away  with  the  desire  to  pace,  and  when  he  broke  from  the  trot  his 

inclination  was  to  indulge  in  a  hand-gallop.       When  forced   to  run, 

the    toe-weight    is   a    terrible     incumbrance,   and   when  the    "  last 

efibrt  "  is  made,  to  hurl  the  body  through  the  air,  there  is  an  immense 

strain  on  the  muscles  and  tendons  of  the  fore  leg  which  gives  the 

final  impulse.       The  whole  weight  of  the  body  has  to  be  flung  to  a 

distance,  and  though  a  portion  of  the  impetus  has  been  derived  from 

the  other  legs,   by  far  the  greatest  part  of  the  force  is  due  to  the 

motion  which  precedes  the  bound.       To  raise  the  weight  on  the  toe 

there  has  to  be  a  violent  movement  at  the  instant  it  leaves  the 

ground,  and  then  it  has  to  be  raised  t©  an  altitude  of  eighteen  inches 

and  thrown  forward  with  a  velocity" which  Muybridge  estimates  to  be 

a  hundred  feet  in  a  second,  or  double  that  of  the  body. 

Whoever  will  give  proper  study  to  this  phase  of  the  action  of  the 
race-horse,  will  readily  understand  the  difficulty  there  is  in  overcom- 
ing the  inertia  of  even  a  few  ounces  of  weight  on  the  toe  ;  and^  as  it 
is    well    known,   that   the    application    of    weight    induces    higher 
action,  there  is  further   loss  of  power  arising  from  the  exuberance 
of  muscular   efibrt.      The    old-time    quarter-horse    men   were    well 
aware  of  the  effect  of  unequal   weight  on  the  feet,  and  a  favorite 
plan  to  mislead  those  they  desired  to  hoodwink,  was  to  "cross  shoe" 
the  horse,  and  then  arrange  it  so  as  to  run  a  night  trial,  when  the 
trick  could  not  be  discovered.     Cross-shoeing  consisted  in  putting  a 
heavy  shoe  on  a  fore  and  hind  foot  on  opposite  sides,  and  a  light  one 
on  the  others,  and  this  would  make  a  difference  of  many  yards  in  a 
quai-ter  of  a  mile.     In  some  cases  which  came   to  my  knowledge, 
an  arrangement  Avas  made  to  leave  the  stable  unguarded,  when  a 
confederate  would  suggest  stealing  the  horse  out  for  a  surreptitious 
trial  run,  after  the  change  in  shoes  had  been  made,  and  the  result 
would   be  that  the  capacity  of  the  animal  was  underrated  and  the 
desired  match  obtained.     In  so  short  a  run  as  a  quarter  of  a  mile 
the  difference  between  shoes  and  plates  is  not  so  great,  and  weight 
on  the  feet  would  not  be  so  effective,  but  the  inequality  broke  the 
regularity  of  stride,  as  well  as  the  drawback  of  additional  weight, 
and  the  purpose  was  thoroughly  effected. 


^ 


"  cnoss-snoEiNG."  xxxi 


Defiance  soon  leai*necl  that  running  was  an  extremely  toilsome 
manner  of  progression  with  a  pound  weight  on  the  toe  of  each  fore 
foot,  and  he  also  realized  that  it  was  inimical  to  the  pacing  gait. 
But  the  sevei-e  exertion  of  the  five  tremendous  heats  with  Edsrinton 
had  made  him  so  "sore,"  that  when  called  upon  to  trot,  the  following 
day,  he  resorted  to  the  hand-gallop  to  escape  the  punishment  the 
fast  trotting  inflicted.  I  have  read  an  account  of  a  plan  adopted  by 
Astley,  of  circus  i-enown,.  that  is  pertinent  to  the  question  of 
mental  influences  on  the  horse,  and  which  is  so  well  authenticated 
that  it  may  be  received  as  the  ti-uth.  A  horse,  after  a  due 
course  of  education  of  the  period,  consisting  mainly  in  severity, 
performed  his  pail  satisfactorily;  but  after  a  short  time, "  though 
faithful  at  rehearsals,  in  the  presence  of  the  assemblage  he  balked. 
The  unmerciful  castigation  could  not  be  inflicted  in  the  course  of  the 
play,  and  he  took  the  advantage  of  his  knowledge  that  he  could  shirk 
his  task  with  impunity.  The  plan  was  adopted  of  filling  the  circus 
with  spectators,  and  when,  relying  on  their  presence,  he  refused  to 
go  through  with  his  part,  the  punishment  was  inflicted  with  extra- 
ordinary severity.  This  destroyed  his  confidence  in  the  immunity 
which  a  crowd  of  people  afibrded,  and  there  was  no  more  trouble 
with  him.  A  still  better  illustration,  and  one  which  is  more  nearly 
analagous  to  the  subject  under  consideration,  I  witnessed  in  Chicago, 
in  1857.  At  that  time  Franconi  was  there,  and  the  trick-horse  he 
brought  from  France  was  ailing.  He  bought  a  roan  horse  called 
'  Chicago  Top,  and  I  took  a  great  deal  of  interest  in  witnessing  his 
manner  of  training  liim.  Part  of  his  system  was  weights  ajjiilied 
to  the  ankles  when  teaching  him  to  dance,  and  these  were  supple- 
mented, at  times,  with  strings  of  small  bells.  The  efiect  on  his 
action  was  astonishing.  Knees  and  hocks  were  sharply  bent,  and 
this  greater  elevation  of  the  feet  and  increased  rapidity  of  stroke 
enhanced  his  capacity  of  keeping  time  to  the  music.  When  per- 
forming, the  bells  were  kept  on,  and  this  was  supposed  to  be  for  the 
same  purpose  of  castanets  in  the  cachuca  and  cracovienne,  but  it  was 
in  reality  a  reminder  of  the  lessons  he  had  received. 

I  have  known  the  small  bells  successfully  used  in  training  trot- 
ters, and  the  old-fashioned  "rattles"  owed  a  portion  of  their  efficiency 


XXXU  BELLS  AND  RATTLES. 

to  the  rattling  of  the  beads.  These  were  spheres  of  lignum  vitse  or 
bone,  strung  on  a  strap  which  was  buckled  around  the  pastern 
loosely,  and  the  effort  to  throw  them  off  caused  a  sharper  bendintr 
of  the  knee.  There  are  still  cases  where  bells  or  rattles  will  be 
found  beneficial,  notwithstanding  the  modem  appliances  have  almost 
banished  them  from  the  trotting  stables.  Many  of  the  younger 
trainers  never  saw  them,  and  would  be  at  loss  to  know  what  they 
were  intended  for. 

In  fact,  the  information  in  the  "  Dexter  circular,"  with  which  the 
country  was  .flooded  some  fifteen  years  ago,  and  of  which  the  sales 
were  enormous,  was  merely  a  recommendation  to  use  the  rattles, 
which  would  be  sent  on  receipt  of  so  much  money.  The  cost  of  the 
circular  was  $1.00,  and  a  great  number  who  got  them  supposed  it 
was  a  new  invention.  In  the  preliminary  newspaper  advertisements 
the  claim  was  made  that  a  great  discovery  had  been  made  in  the 
education  of  trotters,  with  the  usual  number  of  certificates,  guaran- 
teeing its  efficacy.  After  all,  it  may  be  that  a  majority  of  those  who 
obtained  the  information  wei-e  benefited  more  than  the  cost  of  the 
circular  and  rattles. 


CHAPTEE  IV.— Unsolved  Problems. 

"When  I  wrote  the  preceding  chapters  of  the  appendix,  about  two 
years  ago,  I  then  thought  I  had  a  fair  knowledge  of  weight  on  the 
feet  of  horses.  Now,  after  that  length  of  time  of  study,  observa- 
tion, and  the  tests  of  many  experiments,  I  am  in  doubt,  and  in  place 
of  oflering  rules  for  the  guidance  of  others,  am  forced  to  admit  a 
Avant  of  confidence  to  make  statements  with  any  degi-ee  of  authority. 
Further  than  that,  I  have  the  same  lack  of  confidence  in  the  opinions 
of  others,  and  incline  to  believe  that  the  future  must  be  depended 
upon  for  satisfactory  elucidation.  There  has  been  a  wonderful  im- 
provement in  the  manner  of  applying  weights  from  the  nxde  contriv- 
ances at  first  in  vogue  ;  there  has  been  a  great  increase  in  the  intelli- 
gence which  has  led  to  a  more  rational  use,  and  yet  there  is  a  void 
as  annoying  as  it  is  puzzling. 

That  fast  trotters  have  been  made  by  the  use  of  weights  is  beyond 
even  the  cavilings  of  the  hypercritical ;  that  many  promising  horses 
have  been  ruined  by  the  abuse  of  them  is  equally  true.     For  a  time 
Ihere  was  a  mania,  an  infatuation  which  became  epidemic,  and  from 
Maine  to  the  Pacific  every  track  had  a  majority  of  horses  encumbered 
with  these  appendages.     Probably  Indiana,  for  the  number  of  trotters 
in  training,  gave  them  the  gi-eatest  prominence.     Saddle-horses  had 
been  prized  there  ever  since  the   settlement  of  the  country,  and  the 
popular  saddle-gaits  were  cultivated.     Kentucky   and  others  of  the 
Southern  States  were  equally   as  anxious  to  improve  the  horses  that 
played  so  important  a  part  in  daily  life,  but  with  the  excej)tion  of  a 
portion  of  Tennessee,  and  some  sections  of  Missouri,  Kentucky  was 
the   most  indefatigable  in  perfecting  and  breeding  the   trotter.     The 
pacer  and  those  so  often  confounded  with  the  ])acer,  viz.,  the  rackcrs, 
were  more  readily  "  converted  "  by  the  use  of  weights  than  by  any  other 
method. 


XXXIV  BROKEN-GAITED    TROTTERS. 

This  was  also  the  case  with  broken-gaited  trotters,  and  hence 
whenever  a  horse  was  of  these  kinds  he  was  soon  entered  in  a 
course,  in  which  the  most  potent  educator  was  weight  on  the  feet. 

I  have  stated,  in  the  previous  chaptei-s,  that  my  belief  was  that 
the  mental  effects  were  greater  than  the  mechanical,  and  a  few  illus- 
trations were  given  to  sustain  the  argument.  I  still  think  that  posi- 
tion is  correct,  and  though  the  mechanical  is  the  first  efiect,  after 
that  comes  the  benefit  derived  from  the  reasoning  faculties  being 
made  subservient.  The  animal  has  been  compelled  into  action  that 
is  more  favorable  for  speed  ;  his  intelligence  then  comes  to  his  aid, 
and,  cognizant  of  having  mastered  the  difl&cnlty,  he  repeats  the  method 
of  handling  his  feet  and  legs  when  the  monitor  is  removed. 

There  is  another  phase  of  the  toe-weight  problem  that  adds  greatly 
to  the  trouble  in  arriving  at  a  con-ect  solution.  While  broken-gaited 
horses  are  generally  amenable  to  the  good  effects  of  weight,  in  a  few 
instances  it  has  been  found  impossible  to  correct  the  faulty  action 
with  weights,  and  then,  pei-haps,  some  other  contrivance  may  work  a 
cure.  Again,  there  are  two  horses  apparently  identical  in  their  gait. 
Weight  aids  one  of  them,  the  other  it  makes  worse.  Twelve  ounces 
may  be  required  to  accomplish  in  one  what  four  ounces  may  do  in 
another,  and  so  the  paradoxes  apparently  come  into  notice  at  every 
stride  in  the  journey ;  and,  loth  though  we  are  to  acknowledge  the 
ignorance,  it  is  so  palpable  that  it  cannot  be  denied. 

With  all  this  ignorance  there  rests  the  information  that  certain 
valuable  results  have  followed  the  use  of  weights ;  and,  though  I 
cannot  go  so  far  as  my  friend  H.  D.  McKinney,  of  Janesville,  Wis- 
consin, in  saying  that  "  I  would  never  try  to  develop  a  colt  if  I  could 
not  avail  myself  of  the  use  of  toe-weights  if  I  needed  them,"  I  should 
be  at  a  loss  what  to  do  in  many  instances  if  debarred  from  their  aid. 
And,  by  the  way,  I  have  always  considered  that  Mr.  McKinney  was 
"  better  posted  "  on  weights — the  various  kinds,  uses  and  abuses — 
than  any  other  person  in  the  country.  He  invented  some  of  the  best 
patterns  of  their  time,  and  was  largely  engaged  in  the  manufacture. 
Being  a  practical  horseman,  skillful  in  breeding,  rearing  and  driving 
trotters,  and  a  man  of  education  and  intelligence,  it  could  not  be 
otherwise  than  that  he  must  obtain  an  esoteric  knowledge,  valuable 


FOLDING   TBE    KNEE.  XXXV 

as  it  was  complete.  He  wrote  for  the  New  York  Sportsman  an 
essay  which  was  published  in  that  paper  April  30,  1881.  That  essay 
contained  a  good  deal  of  sound  logic,  and  yet  I  imagine  that  he  was 
troubled  somewhat  as  I  am,  and  did  not  feel  very  positive  in  »ivin<^ 
reasons  why  the  results  he  instanced  followed  the  use.  For  instance, 
he  credits  weight  with  giving  a  tendency  to  "  sharper  folding  of  the 
knee,"  and  reasons  that  St.  Julian's  manner  of  progression  indicated 
that  weight  would  increase  his  speed,  and  Maud  S  would  do  better 
without  them :  the  reasoning,  of  course,  being  from  a  theoretical 
point  of  view.  He  also  states  that  "  many  horses  that  cut  their 
elbows  when  shod  with  an  ordinary  pound  shoe  have  been  prevented 
from  doing  so  by  using  an  eight-ounce  shoe  and  four-ounce  weight." 
Now,  as  weight  on  the  wall,  especially  if  placed  high,  is  ci-edited  with 
giving  sharper  knee  action,  in  that  case  the  elbow  should  be  struck 
still  harder.  But  practice  jiroves  that  this  is  not  the  case,  and  we 
ai-e  all  aware  how  superior  are  the  teachings  of  that  over  the  most 
plausibly  constructed  theory  in  the  world.  People,  however,  are 
becoming  convinced  that  much  bending  of  the  knee  is  not  so  essential 
as  it  was  deemed  a  few  years  ago,  and  hence  there  is  not  the  necessity 
for  appliances  to  give  that  excess  of  motion.  Then,  as  in  the  case  of 
the  "  knee-knocker,"  it  has  been  found  that  this  exuberance  may  be 
modified  with  the  application  of  weight,  and  recently  John  A.  Gold- 
smith informed  me  that  he  intended  to  apply  them  on  the  Santa-Claus- 
Sweetness  two-year-old  to  "  carry  him  out."  This  young  trainer  has 
been  remarkably  successful,  both  in  the  use  of  weights  and  also  in 
discarding  them  when  the  proper  time  came.  Director  is  an  instance 
of  the  latter,  and  after  having  been  deemed  one  of  the  sort  that  re- 
quired heavy  weights  to  balance  him,  he  can  now  trot  very  fast  bare- 
footed. In  a  conversation  with  O.  A.  Hickok  a  few  days  ago,  he 
told  me  that  he  saw  Director  move  around  the  fii"st  turn  of  the  Bay 
District  Course  in  36 1  seconds  without  anything  o«  his  feet,  and  he 
went  with  great  ease  and  fine  action. 

In  the  essay  alluded  to  Mr.  McKinney  gives  many  instances  of 
the  efficacy  of  toe  and  side-weights,  and,  doubtless,  in  the  two  sea- 
sons since  he  wrote,  many  others  have  come  under  his  observation. 
It  is  not  proper  to  take  the  views  th.at  wei-e  expressed  even  so  short 


XXXvi  TEACHINGS  OF  THE  ZOETROPE. 

a  time  ago  as  two  years,  when  the  subject  is  so  provokingly  muta- 
tious  as  that  under  consideration.  First,  it  was  thought  that  masses 
of  steel  in  the  shoe  and  correspondingly  hiige  appendages  in  the 
weight  were  an  absolute  requii'ement.  Then  there  have  been 
changes  in  everything  pertaining,  and  from  the  crude  fastener  of  a 
spike  between  the  shoe  and  the  foot  to  the  latest  patent,  there  is  no 
wider  divergence  than  in  the  reasoning  all  have  been  instrumental 
in  evoking.  I  looked  for  a  key  in  the  instantaneous  photographs  of 
horses  in  motion,  and  as  these  gave  the  first  correct  knowledge  of 
the  action  of  a  race-horse,  was  sanguine  enough  to  think  that  with 
their  aid  the  problem  would  no  longer  mystify.  I  pored  over  and 
studied  the  first  cards  that  were  i^ublished,  and  when  Mr.  Muybridge 
sent  me  a  set  ai-ranged  for  the  zoetrope,  I  was  so  eager  to  go  at  the 
lessons  that  I  made  an  instrument  which  proved  as  good  as  need  be 
to  reproduce  the  exact  motions  of  life.  There  has  scarcely  been  a 
night  that  I  have  not  set  the  wheel  revolving,  intent  on  discovery. 
The  gallop,  trot,  pace,  single-footing,  gave  plenty  of  chance  for  com-  > 
parison;  and  still,  so  far,  I  am  in  a  labyrinth  with  one  thread,  per- 
haps, to  drop  in  the  journey.  In  a  fast,  square  trot  there  is  more 
danger  from  the  fore  and  hind  feet  coming  together  in  what  is  called 
scalping  than  at  any  other  gait.  It  may  be  the  only  gait  in  which 
this  can  occur,  as  trotters  and  gallopers  are  the  only  horses  in  train- 
ing I  have  had  for  a  number  of  years,  at  least  twenty,  and  the 
representations  are  my  only  guide.  When  a  colt  commences  to  hitch 
it  so  oftentimes  is  the  cause  that  there  will  be  almost  a  certainty  of 
finding  that  to  be  the  trouble.  Scalping-boots  and  speedy-cuts  do 
not  always  correct  the  difficulty,  as  a  touch  on  the  leather  is  a  re- 
minder of  the  pain  of  previous  blows.  Being  aware  that  the  injury 
is  not  done  in  a  gallop,  an  approximation  to  that  gait  is  depended 
upon  for  relief,  and  it  takes  a  long  time  before  the  fear  is  overcome. 
The  toe-weights  give  an  accelerated  movement,  and  when  the  hind 
foot  passes  under  the  front,  it  is  so  far  elevated  as  to  give  room  with- 
out danger  of  collision.  By  referring  to  the  cuts  of  the  trotter  on 
pages  xviii  and  xix  it  will  be  noticed  that  the  two  fore  feet  are  very 
close  together  when  the  last  impulse  is  given  to  send  the  body 
through  the  air,  and   when  the  hind  foot  gives  the  last  nervous  push 


OVERCOMING    INERTIA.  XXXvii 

and  is  elevated  a  trifle,  the  toe  of  the  fore-foot  on  the  same  side  is  in 
close  proximity  to  the  hind-foot,  which  is  thrust  partly  under  it,  if 
even  they  go  clear. 

The  sharp  bend  in  the  knee,  as  shown  on  page  xxi,  is  when  the 
supporting  legs  are  nearly  vertical.  This  part  of  the  stride  is  when 
the  legs  are  so  far  apart  that  injury  is  impossible  excepting  to  the  el- 
bow, and  the  scalping  wound  is  given  when  the  fore-foot  has  just  left 
the  ground.  To  overcome  the  inertia  of  the  toe-weight,  there  is  a 
quicker  motion — a  sort  of  snatch — which  takes  it  out  of  the  way  be- 
fore the  hind-feet  come  under  the  front.  It  may  require  quite  a 
heavy  weight  at  first  to  call  forth  the  muscular  energy  necessary,  and 
as  the  animal  becomes  accustomed  to  this  action,  the  weights  are  re- 
duced, and,  perhaps,  finally  abandoned.  As  has  been  stated,  Director 
is  an  instance,  and  Mr.  McKinney  presents  another,  and  I  give  it  in 
his  own  words  :  "  Last  season  I  purchased  a  young  mare  at  a  i*ound 
price.  She  was  wearing  pound  shoes  and  six-ounce  toe-weights.  I 
thought  her  fast,  and  paid  for  speed  when  I  bought  her.  I  sent  her 
to  the  ti'ack;.four  weeks  did  not  improve  her  speed.  I  brought  her 
home,  and  took  her  in  hand  myself.  First  time  I  speeded  her  I  saw 
the  toe-weights  were  not  wanted — made  her  fold  too  much,  and 
caused  her  to  dwell — and  they  were  dispensed  with.  Next  day  I 
concluded  the  shoes,  instead  of  weighing  a  pound,  should  weigh  no 
more  than  twelve  ounces ;  in  fact,  removed  eleven  ounces  from  her 
feet,  and  in  ten  days  I  improved  her  speed  ten  seconds.  Now,  the 
man  I  bought  her  of  was  all  right  in  weighting  her  at  first,  as  she 
lacked  action  when  he  bought  her,  and  the  weights  made  her  quite  a 
trotter,  but  he  did  not  know  when  to  begin  to  unload." 

There  are  so  many  illustrations  of  the  same  kind  that  it  would  re- 
quire chapters  to  give  a  small  portion  of  them,  and  any  person  who 
has  the  least  acquaintance  with  horses  that  have  worn  them  is  aware 
of  the  fact.  Now,  if  it  were  a  mere  mechanical  effect  akin  to  the 
counterbalance  on  a  wheel,  to  which  a  crank  and  piston  is  attached, 
the  weight  would  be  an  imperative  necessity  at  all  times.  If  even 
the  effect  were  due  to  the  i)osition  the  weight  bore  to  the  extensoi-s, 
as  has  been  claimed,  there  it  would  have  to  stay.  But  granting  that 
the  pupil  realizes  that  it  has  learned  a  better  method  of  handling  it$ 


XXXVIU  THE  PROPER  SWING. 

limbs  to  progress  according  to  the  wishes  of  the  driver,  then  it  is 
easily  understood  why  the  weight  can  be  thrown  aside  when  the 
lessons  have  been  learned.  Even  with  the  larger  intelligence  of  the 
human  family,  mechanical  contrivances  are  resorted  to  to  correct 
faults  in  the  "style"  of  the  athlete,  the  dancer  and  the  soldier.  The 
proper  swing,  as  it  may  be  termed,  cannot  be  mastered  mthout  using 
methods  that  compel  the  proper  action,  and  these  have  to  be  pereisted 
in  until  habit  overcomes  the  dilatonness  of  natural  gifts.  When  the 
jerk  was  fii-st  given  to  overcome  the  unusual  weight  the  animal  dis- 
covered that  the  usual  injury  did  not  follow.  Thousands  of  times 
rejieated,  confidence  was  established,  and  by  that  time  it  became 
much  easier  to  make  the  proper  motions.  With  that  i-esult  the 
weights  have  accomplished  the  purpose,  and  further  than  that,  there 
is  the  drawback  of  carrying  the  "  ounce  on  the  heel." 

In  the  fir'st  chapter  of  this  apj^endix  I  wr'ote  that  weight  is  a  draw- 
back to  the  race-horse,  an  advantage  to  the  trotter.  I  will  have  to 
modify  that  statement  after  the  lapse  of  two  years,  and  change  it  so 
as  to  read  that  weight  is  advantageoirs  in  the  education  of  many 
trottere,  but  I  am  greatly  in  doubt  of  any  benefit  acci'uing  after  the 
schooling  has  progr-essed  to  a  certain  stage.  Further  than  that,  I 
have  faith  that  the  trotter  of  the  future  will  be  relieved  from  the 
incumbrance  of  heavy  masses  of  metal  on  the  feet,  whether  irr  the 
shape  of  shoes  or  weights,  though  the  latter  may  always  prove  one  of 
the  main  r-esources  for  the  correction  of  wrong  movements.  It  is 
rather  mor-tifying,  however,  to  surrender  a  position  thought  to  be  so 
well  fortified  that  the  fort  could  be  held  for  any  length  of  time,  and 
in  place  of  an  essay  replete  with  erudition,  admit  an  ignorance  that 
I  anr  well  aware  exists.  To  be  eandid,  I  must  confess  that  to  recon- 
cile the  conflicting  testimony  is  beyond  my  capacity  at  present,  so 
far  as  an  explanatory  elucidation  of  the  reasons  for  well-established 
efiects,  and  in  lieu  of  such  a  dissertation,  will  give  a  description  of 
some  of  the  kinds  that  have  come  under  my  observation,  the  reasons 
I  have  for  a  preference  for  some  of  the  patterns,  and  the  difference 
required  in  those  that  are  worn  with  tips.  Tliis  will  include  some  nov- 
elties confined  to  my  individual  pr-actice,  and  which,  so  far  as  tested, 
are  more  satisfactory.     It  will,  of  course,  be  unnecessary  to  occupy 


DISCARDED    PATTERNS.  XXxix 

space  with  those  patterns  which  have  been  generally  discarded,  and 
scarcely  proper  to  select  favorites  further  than  to  indorse  what  I 
consider  the  most  correct  plan  of  applying  the  weights,  and  the  prin- 
ciples underlying  a  safe  use. 

The  most  convenient  method  of  attaching  toe-weights  is  by  usin^ 
a  spur,  which  is  welded  to  the  front  part  of  the  shoe  or  tip.  The 
convenience  arises  from  there  being  no  trouble  with  other  kinds  of 
fastenings,  as  in  one  patented  invention  the  only  thing  necessary  is 
to  slip  the  weight  on,  when  the  bevel  of  the  spur  and  the  tapering 
form  seciirely  holds  it  in  place.  It  is  evident  that  every  time  the 
foot  strikes  the  ground  the  more  firm  will  be  the  clasp,  and  to  release 
it  several  sharp  blows  with  a  hammer  will  be  necessary.  With  this, 
of  coui'se,  there  can  be  no  change  in  position,  and  to  give  the  power 
to  regulate  the  height  of  the  weight  on  the  foot,  a  screw  has  been 
added  to  some  of  them,  A  thread  is  cut  in  a  hole  in  the  weisht,  and 
the  screw  acting  in  this,  presses  against  the  spur,  and  any  desired 
elevation  can  be  obtained. 

But  the  great  drawback  to  the  stationary  and  unremovable  spur  is 
that  in  the  first  place  it  is  unsightly,  and  a  still  graver  objection  is 
that  there  is  a  chance  for  the  horse  to  injure  itself.  Yery  frequently 
a  horse  will  scrape  a  foot  against  the  opposite  leg,  and  in  that  case 
the  sharp  edge  of  the  bevel  will  do  damage.  When  the  animal  is 
walking,  led  by  the  bridle,  a  sudden  stai't  from  fright,  or,  perhaps, 
in  play,  the  legs  are  crossed,  and  injury  follows. 

Last  Summer  I  saw  a  mare  belonging  to  Mr.  Titus  which  caught 
the  spur  and  bent  it  so  far  forward  that  it  was  in  a  horizontal  posi- 
tion when  she  came  back  to  the  stable.  Nearly  all  the  ajipliances  to 
do  away  with  the  objections  of  a  stationary  spur  have  made  neces- 
sary the  mutilating  of  the  horn,  in  order  to  make  a  slot  through 
which  the  part  that  fastened  it  to  the  shoe  could  be  thrust. 

When  the  spur  is  detached  there  is  an  ugly  looking  cut  in  which 
gravel  and  clay  will  accumulate,  and,  in  some  cases,  become  so  firmly 
impacted  that  it  is  troublesome  to  remove.  In  the  many  experi- 
ments I  have  tried  with  weights  there  was  one  plan  that  I  thought 
highly  of  until  I  fell  on  one  much  sim|)ler,  and  in  every  respect 
better,  and  which  will  be  described  hereafter.     In  that  which  has 


Xlii  SCREWS    ARE    EFFECTIVE. 

• 

and  that  after  a  few  times  the  thread  in  the  horn  will  be  worn 
smooth.  That  it  is  effective  I  know  from  the  tenacity  with  which 
the  live  horn  will  hold  even  a  smaller  screw  than  those  which  are 
used  ;  and  if  the  screw  is  driven  home  there  is  not  motion  enough  to 
cause  it  to  lose  its  hold.  Those  that  I  have  tried  have  demonstrated 
this  view  to  be  correct,  inasmuch  as  on  two  occasions  the  quarter- 
boot  slipped,  and  the  screw  still  held  the  weight  in  place.  Although 
I  have  used  mine  for  some  time  before  date  of  the  patent  which  covers 
the  fastening  with  screws  to  the  horn,  it  is  probably  an  infringe- 
ment, and  in  describing  it  it  must  not  be  considered  a  warrant 
for  others  to  use  it.  I  took  a  piece  of  sheet  brass,  an  eighth 
of  an  inch  in  thickness,  and  cut  it  into  the  form  I  wanted.  It 
is  something  of  the  shape  of  an  oval  with  a  continuation  be- 
low to  the  desired  length.  If  the  design  was  to  have  the  weight  low 
on  the  foot  it  was  short,  and  if  high,  long.  Near  the  bottom  a  hole 
is  made  for  the  screw  to  go  through,  the  corresponding  hole  in  the 
horn  being  from  a  quarter  to  half  an  inch  above  the  junction  of  the 
horn  and  tip.  The  desired  weight,  made  of  the  same  sheet  brass  or 
thicker  copper  is  riveted  to  the  oval-shaped  part,  having  the  same 
concavity  to  fit  the  convexity  of  the  hoof.  The  part  next  the  foot  is 
carried  up  nearly  to  the  coronet,  and  an  outside  strip  is  also  made  of 
the  same  length.  The  object  of  this  is  to  form  a  slot  through  which 
the  lower  strap  of  the  quarter-boot  is  passed,  and  the  upper  strap  is 
run  through  a  leather  loop  constructed  as  follows  :  Being  impressed 
with  the  idea  that  there  should  be  some  elastic  material  between  the 
weight  and  the  foot,  a  piece  of  leather  of  the  same  shape,  though 
covering  rather  more  surface,  is  used  for  lining,  the  rivets  which  fasten 
the  plates  together  holding  it,  and  the  upper  part  is  turned  over  back 
to  the  rivet,  forming  the  loop.  This  is  to  have  a  softer  material 
near  the  coronet  than  the  metal.  The  quarter-boot  must  be  made 
with  double  straps  and  to  cover  a  part  of  the  heel  so  as  to  insure  it 
from  slipping  down.  The  strajjs  are  buckled  when  the  weight  is 
higher  on  the  foot  than  it  is  to  be  worn,  and  then  pushed  down  so 
that  the  screw  can  be  introduced.  Notwithstanding  the  added  thick- 
ness of  the  leather  lining  the  longest  screw  I  have  used  has  been 
five-eighths  of  an  inch,  No.  9,  and  in  most  instances  one-half  an  inch 


FASTENER    FOR   SCALPING-BOOT.  xliii 

of  the  same  number.  Before  using  the  screws  in  the  horn,  and  {)re- 
vious  to  the  keystone  fiistener  being  thought  of,  I  tried  cutting  a 
thread  in  the  tip  and  the  horn,  half  in  each.  But  the  thread  on  the 
metal  part  was  too  fine  for  the  horn,  and  it  was  iinsatisfactoiy.  At 
that  time  I  did  not  think  of  using  the  ordinary  wood-screw,  and  the 
small  taps  and  dies  that  I  had  wei-e  very  finely  cut. 

The  use  of  the  wood-screw  not  only  taught  me  a  better  manner  of 
fastening  the   toe-weights,  as  it  also  helped  me  out  of  a  difficulty  in 
attaching  scalping-boots  to    a  bare  foot.     To  keep  these  in  place  I 
thought  it  was  imperative  to  have  at  least  one  projection  at  the  heel 
in  order  to  fasten  it  properly,  and   in  the  case  of  Anteeo,  followed 
the  practice,  heretofore  described,  of  wearing  a  three-quai'ter  shoe. 
With   that  I  used  the  keystone   at  first,  and  then  the  wood-screw 
driven  into   the    horn.       A   thin  piece  of  metal  was   let  into    the 
quarter-boot  for  the  screw  to  pass   through,  and  I  found  the  method 
far  superior  to  a  strap  drawn  through   a  slot.     But  Antevolo  also 
needed  the  protection  of  a  scalper,  and  every  plan  I  tried  of  attaching 
it  to  the  speedy-cut  above  was  a  failure.     I  tried  several  ways  with- 
out any  success,  and  as  a  last  resort  put  on  the  boot  the  same  as  if 
there  was  a  projecting  heel.     Luckily  the  scalper  was  made  of  the 
hardest,  stifiest  leather,  and  the  heel   strap  was  doubled  at  the  place 
where  it  would  rest   on  a  shoe.     I  took  another  piece  of  moderately 
thick  leather,  perhaps  two  inches   wide,  uniting  it  together  after  the 
heel  strap  was  slipped  between.     The  job  was  complete,  and  the  only 
instance  the  boot  came  ofi"  was  when  I  had  been  negligent  in  renewing 
the  hole,  and  the  horn  wore  away  until  there  was  nothing  to  hold. 
The  best  place  I  have  found  to  place  the  screw  is  about  an  inch  out- 
side of  the  center  of  the  toe,  and  the  leather  is  cut  out  in  a  curve  back 
of  the  screw  to  near  the  same,  and  as  when  fastening  the  toe-weights 
and  quarter-boots;  the  strap  is  buckled  before  it  is  shoved  down  to  its 
place,  and  in  this  way  the  tugging  at  the  strap  is  avoided.     The  job 
is  much  easier  than  when  the  other  method  of  fastening  the  scalper 
is  followed,  and  the  danger  of  the  strap  breaking  is  done  away  ^vith. 
It  is  far  easier  to  make  the  holes  in  the  horn  than  many  imagine. 
I  use  a  small  Morse  drill,  put  in  a  handle,  and  a  few  seconds  are  all- 
sufficient.     "Where  two  screws  are  used  there  must  be  due  care  taken 


xliv  LET    WELL    ENOUGH    ALONE. 

to  drill  the  holes  in  the  foot  exactly  corresponding  with  those  in  the 
metal,  though  this  is  easily  done  by  using  in  the  first  place  a  Morse 
drill,  the  same  size  as  the  hole  in  the  weight,  and  by  giving  it  a  turn 
or  two  the  center  is  marked  for  the  smaller.  Drive  that  screw  home, 
having  been  careful  to  give  the  pi^oper  angle,  and  then  put  in  the 
other  hole. 

I  have  no  desire  to  induce  people  to  use  any  particular  pattern  of 
weight.  My  preferences  are  not  offered  as  a  guide  for  others  to  fol- 
low, and  it  may  be  that  there  aj«  drawbacks  that  I  have  failed  to 
discover. 

Meager  as  this  appendix  is  in  suggestions,  and  though  I  am  loth 
to  present  it  in  the  shape  that  I  do,  my  i-eadei-s  will  coincide  with 
me  that  it  is  better  than  to  mislead  with  opinions  which  have  no 
firmer  basis  than  the  wildest  conjectures.  That  immense  benefits 
have  followed  the  introduction  of  toe-weights  is  beyond  question ; 
that  the  ill  effects  have  been  reduced  at  .least  ninety  per  cent,  by  a 
more  intelligent  use  is  also  certain  ;  that  the  advantages  have  far 
overbalanced  the  drawbacks  I  implicitly  believe,  and  the  trainer  of 
trotters  who  does  not  make  use  of  them  in  some  cases  is  either  very 
fortunate  in  the  pupils  he  has,  or  is  behind  the  times. 

When  colts  are  doing  well,  going  squarely,  improving  in  sj^ed  as 
I'apidly  as  a  reasonable  man  can  desire,  my  advice  is  to  let  well 
enough  alone.  When  the  reverse  is  the  case,  and  there  is  a  tendency 
to  hitch,  singlefoot,  pace,  shorten  the  stride,  etc.,  tiy  Aveights,  light 
at  fii-st,  heavier  if  these  do  not  correct.  But  it  also  must  be  borne 
in  mind  that  every  ounce  is  additional  strain  on  the  muscles  and  ten- 
dons, and  oftentimes  in  the  training  of  trotters,  a.s  in  other  pursuits, 
"the  more  liaste  the  less  speed." 

The  "side-weight"  question  is  even  more  troublesome  to  me  than 
that  which  pertains  to  the  fore-foot,  and  further  than  to  give  the 
result  of  a  few  expei'iments,  and  the  reasoning  which  these  have  led 
to,  I  will  not  go.  Nearly  twenty  years  ago  I  wrote  that  the  action 
of  the  forelegs  was  more  under  the  control  of  man  than  that  of  the 
hind,  and  this  assumption  I  still  hold  to  be  coxTCct.  In  common  with 
a  large  majority  of  men  of  the  present  day  who  have  paid  a  good 
deal  of  attention  to  the  trotting  action,  I  have  changed  my  views,  in 


SIDE-WEIGHTS    USELESS.  xlv 

some  respect,  in  regard  to  an  "  open  gait,"  and  in  place  of  consider- 
ing it  essential  that  the  hind  legs  should  be  carried  apart  enough  to 
clear  the  fore-legs  on  the  outside,  have  become  convinced  that  it  is 
not  necessary.  Some  of  the  fastest  go  close  with  their  hind  feet,  and 
usually  the  Electioneers  cany  both  fore  and  hind  feet  near  together. 
If  there  is  no  cutting  or  wounding  of  coronet,  pastern,  shin  or  knee, 
this  is  manifestly  a  husbanding  of  forcfe,  the  same  as  when  there  is 
just  knee  and  hock  action  suificient  to  giA'-e  length  of  stride.  Excess 
of  action  of  any  kind  is  a  waste  of  physical  force,  and  the  smooth, 
easy-going  trotter  takes  the  same  status  as  the  "  daisy-cutter  "  among 
race-hoi-ses.  But  when  a  horse  carries  the  limbs  so  that  they  receive 
a  violent  blow  from  the  passing  foot,  some  remedy  has  to  be  discov- 
ered. Though  in  a  great  number  of  instances  boots  offer  sixfficient 
protection,  there  are  cases  when  they  fail  to  give  a  safeguard,  and 
valuable  as  these  appendages  are  there  are  cases  beyond  the  power 
they  possess  to  correct.  In  such  a  case  as  when  the  shin,  ankle  or 
pastern  of  the  hind  leg  was  struck,  the  nearly  unanimous  agreement 
among  trainers  was  to  use  side-weights,  under  the  impression  that  by 
putting  them  on  the  outside  of  the  feet  the  legs  would  be  carried 
farther  apart.  I  felt  the  utmost  confidence  that  this  was  the  correct 
idea,  and  in  a  previous  chapter  give  the  history  of  a  pacer  that  was 
cured  of  a  habit  of  knocking  liis  knees  by  weighting  the  outside  of 
his  front  shoes  and  giving  his  slow  work  with  an  instrument  in  his 
"fork"  that  kept  i;p  a  steady  outward  pressure.  I  am  of  the  opinion 
now  that  the  benefit  came  from  the  pressing  outward,  as  that  was 
continued  some  length  of  time,  and  when  driven  fast  afterwards,  the 
martingale,  that  part  of  which  came  between  the  legs,  was  made 
wide  and  padded. 

Something  over  a  year  ago,  when  studying  the  effect  of  the 
weights,  I  came  to  the  conclusion  that  the  commonly  accepted  theory 
was  wrong,  and  that  a  contrary  result  would  follow.  For  instance, 
to  take  a  rod,  and  send  it  swinging  like  a  pendulum,  whichever  side 
the  weight  was  placed,  there  would  follow  a  divergence  from  a  verti- 
cal line,  the  bent  being  away  from  the  weight,  the  center  of  gi-avity 
would  be  nearer  the  weight  in  oi'der  to  equalize  the  sides.  When 
the  leg  was  in  motion  there  would  be  an  analogy  between  it  and  the 


xlvi  A   WRONG   DIRECTION. 

jjendulum ;  but  then  arose  the  question  of  overcoming  the  inertia, 
and  that   might  counteract  the  tendency  to  swing  away  from  the 
weight.     In  order  to  give  it  a  practical  test  I  had  a  set  of  hind  shoes 
made  for  X  X,   the  inside  web  being  double  the  outside,  and  conse- 
quently twice  the   weight.      Each   shoe  weighed   eighteen  ounces, 
twelve  on  the  inside  from  the  center  of  the  toe  back,  to  six  ounces 
on  the  outer  pai-t.     Riding  behind  him   in  a  skeleton  wagon  before 
the  shoes  were  put  on  and  afterwards,  I  thought  that  I  could  plainly 
see  that  he  went  wider.     He  wore  these  shoes  from  February  14th 
to  March  30,    1882,   and  when  pulled  off  that   from  the  right  foot 
weighed  15|  ounces,   and  the  left  15  ounces.     This  difference  in  the 
wear  was,   doubtless,   owing  to  an  injury  to  the  hock  joint  which 
made  it  a  trifle  stiff,   and  consequently  there  was  moi-e  of  a  sliding 
motion,  and  less  hock  action  than  in  the  other.      The  same  day  the 
shoes  were  removed  I  drove  him  to  the  track,   and  though  he  moved 
easier  without  the  heavy  hind  shoes,   it  was  perceptible  that  the  feet 
were  carried  closer  together.       Before  making  this  test  I  had  a  con- 
versation with  Hon.  A.  P.  Whitney,  of  Petaluma,  which  arose  from 
a  question  he  asked.      The  query  was  :  "  What  do  you  consider  the 
proper  method  to  follow  when  a  horse  brushes  the  outside  of  his  fore- 
foot in  passing  it  with  the  hind  ?"     The  reply  was  that  if  he   had 
asked   the  question  a  few  weeks  before,   I  should   have  answered 
promptly  :  "  Use  side- weights  on  the  outside  of  his  hind  feet ;"  but 
now  I  was  in  doubt  of  that  being  the  right  course.   He  then  informed 
me  that  he  had  a  horse  which  just  grazed  the  fore-foot,   and,  follow- 
ing instructions,  he  applied  side- weights.     In  place  of  "  carrying  him 
further  out,"  as  he  was  assured  would  be  the  result,  he  went  so  much 
further  in  the  opposite  direction  that   he  struck   squarely  into  his 
heel,  and  with  so  much  force  there  as  to  "  knock  him  off  his  feet." 

The  only  other  illustration,  apart  from  my  own  trials,  was  a  test 
which  John  A.  Goldsmith  made  with  Inca.  He  had  the  same  views 
I  formerly  shared,  and  in  a  conversation  last  summer  advocated 
placing  the  weight  on  the  outside.  One  of  his  "  string "  was  the 
stallion  Inca  by  Woodford  Mambrino,  from  the  dam  of  Del  Sur  and 
Eomero.  He  was  a  horse  of  peculiar  action,  twisting  his  fore  feet 
outward  and  anything  but  a  true-gaited  trotter. 


WEIGHT    ON    THE    INSIDE.  xlvii 

The  shoes  jKit  on  Inca  weighed  eleven  ounces  each,  the  inner  side 
being  wide  enough  to  give  twice  the  weight  of  metal,  and  with  these 
there  was  a  manifest  improvement  in  his  speed  and  manner  of  going. 
He  had  a  record  of  2:32,  or  about  that,  when  Goldsmith  got  him, 
and  after  the  change  in  his  shoes  he  trotted  at  Santa  Rosa  in  the 
2:30  class,  winning  the  first  heat  in  2:27,  was  second  to  Albert  W  in 
the  second  heat  in  2:27,  and  won  the  third  in  2:27f,  Albert  "W  win- 
ning the  race. 

From  Anteeo  wearing  the  outside  of  his  shoe  while  the  inner  was 
scarcely  bright,  and  also  thinking  the  three-quai-ter  shoe  so  much  bet- 
ter for  the  hind  foot,  I  used  that  i)attern. 

Becoming  convinced,  however,  that  the  weight  on  the  outside  was 
inimical,  I  had  full  hind  shoes  made,  the  outer  side  nan-ow  and  thick, 
the  inner  thin  and  wide,  the  object  being  to  make  the  weight  equal, 
and  keep  the  foot  as  nearly  level  as  possible  during  the  period  of 
wear.  This  did  not  make  a  perceptible  difference,  and  so  I  returned 
to  the  three-quarter  shoe,  covering  the  outside  in  order  to  have  a  rest 
for  the  heel-strap  of  the  scalping-boot.  With  the  steel  coming  on 
the  inside  there  was  so  little  wear  of  the  metal  that  in  ten  days  or 
two  weeks  the  foot  would  have  quite  a  cant  to  the  outside.  This 
was  in  a  measure  obviated  by  leaving  the  inner  side  bare,  and  I 
deemed  it  better  to  guard  against  a  wrong  twist  than  to  obtain  the 
slight  benefit  of  weight  on  the  inside.  But,  after  finding  out  that  a 
scalping-boot  could  be  kept  in  place  without  the  projecting  heel,  I 
decided  to  put  tips  on  behind,  as  the  only  place  he  wore  much  of  the 
metal  away  was  at  the  toe  and  about  half-way  back  on  the  outside,  and 
a  short  distance  back  of  the  toe  on  the  inside.  That  part  of  the  tip 
was  miide  wider  in  order  to  equalize  the  weight,  and  they  were  set 
on  December  20th.  "While  wearing  these  the  only  work  he  had  was 
jogging  on  the  road,  driven  by  the  man  who  takes  care  of  him,  and 
he  reported  that  he  handled  himself  better  than  in  anything  he  had 
worn  before.  On  the  18th  of  January  I  pulled  ofi"  the  hind  tips,  which 
were  worn  almost  to  an  edge,  put  on  front  tips,  weighing  three  ounces 
each,  and  I  had  to  cut  away  his  heels  a  good  deal  to  bring  them  on 
a  level  with  the  tip.  The  hind  feet  were  left  bare,  and  the  edges 
rounded.     I  moved  him  through   the  stretch  the  next  day,  and  he 


xlviii  IN    THE   DARK. 

handled  himself  very  well  without  anything  in  the  shape  of  boots. 
Since  then  I  have  driven  him  occasionally,  putting  on  toe- weights  of 
three  and  three-fourth  ounces,  and  quarter-boots,  and  restricting  his 
fast  work  to  brushes  through  the  stretch.  The  hind  feet  I  keep 
level  by  cutting  the  inside  every  few  days  to  correspond  with  the 
wear  on  the  outer,  and  being  careful  to  round  the  edges  to  guaixl 
against  breaking.  When  wearing  tips  in  front  and  three-quarter 
shoes  behind,  all  the  boots  he  required  wei'e  ankle  and  seal  ping- 
boots  ;  with  the  tips,  toe- weights  and  quarter-boots,  and  hind  feet 
entirely  bare,  he  requires  shin  boots  with  a  speedy-cut  attachment, 
and  these  he  marks  with  the  outside  of  the  fore-foot,  and  occasion- 
ally brushes  the  outside  of  the  quarter-boot  with  the  inside  of  the 
hind-foot.  Now  what  is  the  cause  of  this  going  wider  behind  I 
will  not  undertake  to  say  with  any  degi^ee  of  authority.  I  think  he 
is  showing  more  speed  than  he  did  previously,  as  he  hauled  the  cart 
through  the  stretch  in  thirty-eight  seconds,  and  I  only  drove  him  at 
his  best  for  about  two  hundred  yards.  Last  summer  the  toe-weights 
were  detrimental,  retarding  his  speed  in  the  few  trials  I  gave  them. 
Now  they  are  surely  an  advantage,  or  else  it  is  the  change  in  his 
disposition  that  must  be  credited  with  the  improvement.  As  he  has 
become  less  obstinate,  more  ready  to  go  and  a  willingness  to  trot 
from  the  start,  there  may  be  something  more  potent  than  the  weights 
to  ascribe  the  change  to.  At  all  events,  the  data  is  presented,  and 
my  readers  can  draw  the  inferences. 


INDEX. 


CHAPTER  I. — Necessity  for  a  Better  System  of  Shoeing. 

Guards  against  concussion — Breaking  the  jar — "  Round-hoof 'd " — Dilata- 
tion and  contraction — Weight  controls  the  action — Tight  boots. 

CHAPTER  II.— Guards  Again'st  Concussion — An  Elastic  Shoe 
— Stonehenge  on  Tips,  Etc. 
Artificial  requirements — Unfettered  quarters — The  English  greyhound — 
The  Oakland  streets — "Dwelling"  action. 

CHAPTER  III.— Different  Forms  of  Tips — Effect  of  Weight 
on  the  Feet— Miles'  Essay — Etc. 
Best  method  of  nailing — The  rolling-motion  shoe — Changing  the  pace  into 
the  trot — Open-heeled  shoes — An  admirable  contrivance. 

CHAPTER  IV". — Cure  of  a  Sprung  Tendon — Results  of  Exper- 
iments— Etc. 
A  surprising  effect — Hock-Hocking, 

CHAPTER  V. — From   Shoes   to   Tips — Further  Satisfactory 

Tests. 
Intelligent  trainers — One-sided  tip— An  important  subject. 

CHAPTER  VI. — Mistakes  of  Blacksmiths  and  Grooms — Hard 
Roads  and  the  Consequences, 
A  singular  influence — Practices  of  the  vaquero — Corns  and  contraction — 
Elasticity  of  the  sole. 

CHAPTER  VII. — Differences  of  Opinion  in  Regard  to  Proper 
Action — Effects  of  Changes   in  Shoeing — Practical  Exam- 
ples, Etc. 
Colonel  Lewis  and  FuUerton— Effects  of  a  heavy  shoe— The  trials  of 
Avola — Restricted  Experiments— Contrary  effects  of  weight. 


u 

CHAPTER  VIII. — Endorsement  of  Tips — Three-Quarter  Shoe. 
Hampering  the  Growth— Wear  on  the  outside — Correcting  faulty  action — 
The  Goodenough  shoe — Decreased  strain  on  the  tendon — An  eflfective 
friction-break. 

CHAPTER  IX. — Guards  Against  Concussion. 

Foot  of  the  elephant — -Rational  ox-shoeing^Erroneous  setting  of  tips — 
Stride  of  the  race-horse. 

CHAPTER  X — Growth  of  the  Horn — Protection  to  the  Foot. 
Elasticity  of  natural  horn — Bedding  the  tips — A  practical  illustration — 
A  convert. 

CHAPTER  XL — A  Natural  Foot  vs.  a  Perfect  Foot. 
Cracked  heels — Lady  Viva. 

CHAPTER  XI  {Continued). — Reason  foe  Want  of  Connection — 
History  of  Anteeo. 
The  first  Embryo — Width  and  elasticity  of  frog. 

CHAPTER  XII. — History   of  Anteeo   Continued — Sketch  of 
Antevolo. 
An  incorrigible — A  trial  with  toe-weights — Regeneration — A  projecting 
tip — Antithetons. 

CHAPTER  XIII. — English  Ideas  of  Horse-Shoeing — Tips  and 
Charlier  Shoes. 
Tips  on  saddle-horses — Tips  on  hunters — Error  in  paring  the  sole — Infini- 
tesimal tips — Motives  for  shoeing — Necessity  for  nailing— Work  with 
Nature — Miserable    life,    premature    death — Tips    to    be    tried — Still 
experimenting. 


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